Pokemon Rebel
by nasdreks
Summary: All Lucas ever wanted to be was a Pokemon Trainer, but his dream was stolen by his older brother John. Now a certifiable juvenile delinquent, he's getting a second chance to be a trainer and show his family, the world—and himself what he's made of.
1. Chapter 1 Deliquent

All Lucas ever wanted to be was a Pokemon Trainer, but at 10 years-old his dream was stolen by his older brother John. Now 16 and a certifiable juvenile delinquent, he's getting a second chance to be a trainer and show his family, the world—and himself what he's really made of.

Chapter 1: Delinquent

Lucas's older brother John was better than him at everything. He got better grades in school, teachers loved him, he had more friends and excelled in sports. The siblings' parents would always ask Lucas, 'why can't you be more like your brother?' However, their criticisms never bothered him, and John's numerous talents never brought about an ounce of anger or jealousy, because he knew, someday, that he would be better than his sibling at something. And he knew exactly what that would be: Pokemon. Because for Lucas, the numerous creatures were the only thing in the world that mattered.

One day when Lucas was four years-old, a family friend who was a trainer came for a visit and showed the boy his team. He was enthralled that creatures so powerful, intelligent and varied could be so friendly. It was in that moment Lucas fell in love with Pokemon and determined his life's journey. He constantly begged for new Pokemon merchandise and information. His constant companion was a stuffed Snorlax he nicknamed Lumpy that he had received on his fifth birthday. He counted down the days until he turned ten years-old and could get his Trainer's License. John, on the other hand, could care less about the creatures. While Lucas would play with the wild Pokemon just outside of his home in Cherrygrove City, John usually spent his time hanging out with his friends at the local arcade, or play on the beach. This was why it came such a shock to the younger brother when on John's tenth birthday he announced he would take his school leave and become a Pokemon Trainer. Within a year of leaving home, John became the League Champion of Johto, after another six months he had conquered Kanto, and shortly after that became the Champion of Sinnoh as well. Lucas realized he didn't stand a chance, Pokemon would be yet another thing his brother would always be superior at—the one thing the boy ever really cared about. Soon Lucas became consumed by a series of emotions he had never felt for his sibling: anger, jealousy and above all, hate and stopped caring about anything. When he finally turned ten he declined his chance for a Trainer Card and carved a new destiny for himself: if John, the perfect brother who stole Lucas's only passion was going to be good at everything, the younger boy would do everything in his power to be bad at everything. That's when Lucas started hanging out with his gang.

With his new-found friends, he'd go around vandalizing buildings, harassing the residents of Cherrygrove, and constantly get into fights. They were the only people anymore who seemed to understand the boy and his mission, kids like him that the world had given up on, and in turn had given up on the world. Lucas's GPA was 0.8 before he was finally expelled from high school. He had tied up a boy and duct-taped his mouth before stuffing him into his locker. It was three days before the boy was found, and when confronted by the principal Lucas showed no remorse. He was kicked out the next day. For his parents, this was the last straw. They tried grounding him, punishing him, but even two stints in Juvenile Hall did nothing to change his attitude. Unable to handle their rebellious son, they took the boy to the port in Olivine City and put him on a ship headed to the Sinnoh Region to live with his brother. For Lucas, there was no worse punishment.

Once upon a time, Lucas had been a cheerful looking boy with warm brown eyes and messy dark brown hair. Now at sixteen, the short brown hair was replaced by a fire-engine red Mohawk surrounded by short buzzed hair dyed black. A few seemingly random series of long hairs interspersed the much shorter fuzz at the front of his head to make for his bangs. His eyes were still brown, but now had a near-constant, angry, hard-edge to them, framed by a series of hoops and bell bars in his eyebrows. More hoops peppered the outer perimeters of his ears, finished at the lobe by three-quarter inch plugs that fit snugly in stretched holes. In either corner of his mouth, now held in an annoyed grimace, were two more hoops pierced through his bottom lip. As he walked safety-pins jingled in a neat, straight line down his black, skin-tight sleeveless turtleneck t-shirt, over which he wore an army-green vest with lots of pockets. His lack of sleeves fully exposed the tattoos that ran down his arms: on his right, a skeletal battle between the fossil Pokemon Aerodactyl and Kabutops, on his left, the commercially available Pokeballs done in a highly stylized calligraphic fashion with swirling scroll work connecting them. Around his waist were a series of belts, only one of which was used to hold up his faded brown pants. On his feet were intimidating looking steel-toed boots in shiny black patent leather, under which the twigs and leaves of the Eterna Forest cracked and crunched as he moved through the only clear path between the trees. With one hand he clung to the strap slung over his shoulder of his army-style duffel bag which now held all his earthly possessions, the other hand clamped onto piece of paper. Lucas paused for a moment and glanced again at the scrap of paper he and been clutching. The boy rarely smiled anymore, but as he reread the note his grimace increased.

The trip on the boat from Johto to Sinnoh had been an unpleasant one. It was long and there was little to do and Lucas was constantly surrounded by happy trainers that he desperately envied but knew he could never be. They would constant battle around him and show off their teams, and to add insult to injury, some would occasionally ask about Lucas's Pokemon, and the boy was forced to explain he was not a trainer coming to challenge the league—no matter how badly he would have liked to. And he was once again reminded by the fact that was coming to live with the person who was responsible for this, the former Sinnoh Champion, his brother John. And once more his hatred for his brother and determination to be nothing like him returned. The boat finally docked in Canalave City and the final ounce of salt was added to the wound. Rather than meeting his brother at the dock like their mother ordered, Lucas was greeted by a message delivery person who handed him a piece of paper:

_"Dear Delinquent,_

_Couldn't meet you as you got off the ship because something more important came up. I'm pretty sure you can handle yourself and come to Eterna City on your own. I know Mom gave you some money but I know you're not stupid enough to try to run away and live on your own. And even if you are you'll run out of it eventually and you'll come here when you're hungry enough._

_Don't get arrested in the meantime,_

_John"_

Lucas reread the note and wadded it into an angry little ball before stuffing it back into the vest pocket over his heart. He had to give his mother credit, even after everything he had put her through, she still gave him some emergency money which he was now extremely grateful for. With it he was forced to buy a map and began his trek towards Eterna City. He took a ferry to cross the river to Jubilife city, before going north to Floroma Town. He stopped in the picturesque city for a meal, noticing how much he stood out amongst the residents. When the local officer gave him a suspicious glance, Lucas moved on. Now he was in the middle of Eterna Forest, the last stop before finally arriving in Eterna City and starting his sentence. Out of another pocket Lucas pulled out his map and checked it. Unfortunately the paper map wasn't very detailed, and only showed a general overview of the forest, there was no marked path. As the young man continued to move forward the sticks becoming more numerous, the grass became thicker and taller and the path all but disappeared. Eventually Lucas ran into a large boulder covered with thick moss and just beyond it the trees turned into a virtual wall, with a groan he realized he had gone the wrong direction. The annoyed boy was about to turn around and back-track his was to the last fork he took when he heard a small sound come from the side of the large rock that signaled his mistake.

"Viiii," a small brown creature with large black eyes, long ears, a fluffy mane and incredibly fluffy tail was sitting huddled against the rock. It was an Eevee. Lucas studied the cute creature intensely, a bad feeling rising in his stomach. Eevee were extremely rare and valuable Pokemon, and though not entirely familiar with the Sinnoh region, Lucas was fairly certain wild Eevee didn't live in this forest. Additionally, the creature looked completely miserable: its ears were drooped, its fur was damp and matted and it appeared to be trembling. One thought came to the boy, its trainer had abandoned it. A dilemma arose in his mind, on one hand Lucas was not a trainer and this wasn't his business, on the other the Pokemon looked extremely sick and the likelihood of another passerby in the near future was low. The Eevee looked up at the juvenile delinquent with hope and desperation and in that instant the boy knew what he had to do. Lucas picked up the tiny Pokemon without struggle, whether because it trusted him or because it was too weak to fight back didn't matter much to him, he gently placed the creature under his vest and started running back down the path.

The young man ran as fast as he could, his duffle bag hitting him painfully on his back, as he chose the opposite side of the fork. The path stayed consistent before breaking into a three-part fork. Lucas cursed his bad luck and ran in place as he racked his brain trying to figure out which choice would get him out of the forest. The Eevee now had its eyes closed and the boy could feel its breathing slowing down. Suddenly a figure appeared down one of the paths, walking quickly towards Lucas. He could identify the person as a woman because of her tight shirt, but her face was covered with a green hooded cape. Lucas called out to her.

"Hey! Do you know which way gets me out of this forest? I need to get to a Pokemon Center, like, now!" Without a word the woman raised her arm and pointed to the furthest right selection of the fork. Lucas nodded and began running again, "Thanks!"

Lucas sped up, the path was quickly growing brighter as the trees started thinning out and finally opened to a small clearing with a small pond. He ran across the wooden bridge covering it, his heavy boots shaking the planks and getting the attention of the Fisherman trainers who were lazily hunting Water-types. Just ahead between two massive rock formations the boy could see buildings, he was almost at Eterna City. His feet carried him into the metropolis, his eyes now on the sharp lookout for the red-roofed building all Pokemon Trainers relied on. Thankfully it was close. With a final burst of speed Lucas slammed through the doors and screamed, "Hey! Hey I need some help here!"

The Pokemon Center was almost empty and the nurse blessedly not busy. Lucas ran to counter and placed the ill Eevee in front of her. Her eyes widened in horror as she observed the Eevee, but without a word she nodded and scooped up the sick Pokemon herself. Followed by a small army of Chansey the nurse vanished to an operating room.

With the Eevee tended to, the adrenaline fueling Lucas subsided and he felt the effects of his exploits. He was now seriously out of breath and his legs were cramping badly, not to mention he was fairly sure his back was now badly bruised. He wondered to himself if this was punishment for constantly ditching gym class, to be in as bad shape as he was, as he dragged himself to a chair to recover. Waiting for the nurse he debated on whether or not to call John. He decided against it. John clearly didn't care that much where Lucas was or wasn't—otherwise he would have come to the dock in Canaclave himself and the longer he could put off dealing with his smug sibling, the better. The nurse finally came out from the back, she looked weary and and had a serious look on her face. Lucas's heart sank.

"Is it going to be okay?" Lucas asked hesitantly, he wasn't sure if he wanted to hear the answer.

"Your Eevee is going to be just fine," the nurse replied, her face now enraged, "You should be ashamed of yourself. How dare you let your Pokemon get that sick without treatment! He had fluid in his lungs and a sore on his stomach. If you would have waited any longer there would have been no way to save it. You should get your license revoked!"

Lucas snapped up from the chair in fury, ignoring the burning in his legs, "Hey lady, get off my back! That Pokemon isn't mine,"

"What?" Her tone softening and her eyes widening again.

"I'm not even a trainer. I just stumbled across it in the woods and try to do the right thing. No good deed goes unpunished, that's for sure," The boy replied acidly.

"I'm so sorry. It's just...when I see what some people do to their Pokemon it breaks my heart. Thank you for doing the right thing," The nurse bowed apologetically and sighed, "But least now I understand why that poor Eevee was in the woods,"

"Why?"

"Eevee are very unique Pokemon, they have the ability to evolve into seven different types—maybe even more. But this one can't evolve at all,"

"Why not?"

"When I was running tests on it I noticed something strange about its blood. It had a trace of a mineral called Everstone. Everstones are so powerful that even if just held they can prevent a Pokemon from evolving. I suspect our little friend accidentally must has swallowed one at some time. That must be why its trainer abandoned it. That large moss covered stone in Eterna forest is called 'Moss Rock'. When Eevee are trained around it they evolve into the grass type, Leafeon. The trainer must have leveled it and leveled it, and when the Eevee wouldn't turn into Leafeon the trainer got fed up and told the Eevee to stay there. There is proper way to release Pokemon back into the wild, but you can't just tell it to stay somewhere and leave it. It's cruel,"

"If I ever find the guy who did it I'll break his face in," Lucas muttered under his breath as he sat back down. "So what's going to happen to him?"

"Well, in a little while it's going to be just fine. When treated, Pokemon heal extraordinarily fast, it's quite amazing. Since his trainer gave him up we can release him, _properly_ release him. It's perfectly fine to release a Pokemon you don't want to train so long as you do it the right way. But it would be a shame since Eevee are so rare and hard to find. Then again I also know a woman in Hearthome City that raises Eevee, that could be a suitable home," the nurse paused and turned to the Mohawk-bearing boy seated near her, "Of course, _you_ could always take him,"

Lucas looked down at the floor, "I'm not a trainer."

"You could always become one, it's very easy to get a Trainer's Card," the nurse added with a huff, "In some cases a little _too_ easy,"

"You don't get it. There already is a trainer in my family. There's no point in me becoming one, too,"

"And what kind of silly reasoning is that?" A deep male voice suddenly interjected. Standing in the door was an old man with white hair and a square jaw wearing a white lab coat. He held his arms behind his back and strode towards the Pokemon Center's counter.

The nurse gasped in a revered whisper, "Professor Oak!"


	2. Chapter 2 Trainer

Chapter 2: Trainer

Lucas's eyes widened in awe and admiration as the venerable Pokemon Professor approached the Center's counter.

"I saw this young man running to this Pokemon Center and came in to see what had happened. I overheard the whole conversation," The old man stood in front of Lucas and without turning away from the boy addressed the nurse, "Would it be all right if I spoke this young man alone?"

"That's fine, I'll go check on the Eevee," the nurse replied and wandered back to the recovery room.

"Now what is this ridiculousness about you not being a trainer?" despite being an old man and not very tall, Professor Oak could still be an intimidating figure, standing firmly with his arms crossed and a relaxed expression that was equal parts friendly and judging. Lucas looked up at the man and slumped his shoulders in defeat. It wouldn't make sense to try to lie or dodge the question.

"My brother is John, the former Champion of Sinnoh, Kanto _and_ Johto. Not only that he's been better at me at _everything_ since I was pretty much born," Lucas explained sadly. It was probably the first time since he was seven that he had ever opened up to an adult, "If I became a trainer it'd just be yet another thing he could prove he's better at. Another way he could prove I'm the failure of my family,"

"Do you like Pokemon?"

"I love 'em!" Lucas stated, "Have since I was a kid,"

"So what does it matter if you're good at it or not? We don't love things because we're good at them, we get good at things we love," the professor explained philosophically. He put a hand to his chin and leaned over to further exam the teen with the Mohawk, "Besides, I'm not convinced you would be bad at training Pokemon,"

Lucas glanced at the old man sceptically, "What makes you so sure? For all you know I'm just some punk kid 'with an attitude problem' like everyone thinks I am. You don't know me from Adam,"

"I've always had an eye for talent when it comes to Pokemon Trainers. And 'punk kids' don't save sick Pokemon that don't even belong to them. I know lots of Trainers who have trained for years and wouldn't have done that. I'm willing to bet you're a nice kid who was dealt an unfair hand and reacted by trying to prove that he's as worthless as everyone makes him out to be," Professor Oak shockingly astute observation unnerved Lucas. "I'm so sure in fact, I'd be willing to stake _this_ on it,"

The professor reached into his lab coat and pulled out a shiny red device from his pocket. Lucas gasped, despite himself, "A Pokedex!"

"That's right. Information on Pokemon is always changing with new discoveries. Twenty years ago we thought only 150 Pokemon existed in the world, today we know there's substantially more than that. The information is very valuable but difficult to get because filling it out requires catching every known species of Pokemon there is. I only give Pokedexes to determined Trainers I think have the skill and guts to fill them. Trainers who could take on the Champion and win. It's yours if you want it,"

Lucas had wanted that device for as long as he remembered, but reality was reminding the boy of his fate, "But I told you, I'm not a trainer. I don't have a license, I wouldn't even be allowed to own Pokemon without it,"

"You let me worry about that. Just come to my house tomorrow afternoon and I'll have everything ready for you,"

"Your house? I thought you lived in Pallet Town,"

"I do, but I also have a house here. I come to Sinnoh very frequently to visit my old friend Professor Rowan. You'll want to visit him some time in the future," At that moment the nurse came back with the little Eevee in her arms.

"Look who's all better," She chimed happily. The Eevee jumped out of her arms and ran over to Lucas, "When I went back there he was going nuts, I guessed he wanted to come out and see you, young man,"

"Hey lil' buddy," Lucas said kindly before picking up the now healthy Pokemon. The nurse wasn't kidding about how fast the creatures recover. The now snuggling normal-type was completely different than the pitiful creature he found in Eterna Forest.

"So have you decided to keep him or should I call Bebe?" The nurse asked.

Lucas looked to the professor and then to the little brown animal in his arms, "I'm keeping him!"

"Then I'll get you a Pokeball," The nurse reached under the counter and procured the red and white object Trainers kept their Pokemon in for safe travel and convenience. As she handed the ball over to the boy she asked another question, "Would you like to name your new Pokemon?"

Lucas looked the Eevee again and replied, "Yeah, I'll call him Gizmo,"

As Professor Oak watched the transaction he had a sudden realization. He reached into his lab-coat again and pulled out three Pokeballs, "There's something I always give to trainers who receive my Pokedex. You may choose between Charmander, Bulbasaur or Squirtle,"

The boy couldn't believe his luck. He had dreamed of this moment his whole life. He had imagined going to Professor Elm in New Bark Town, just outside of Cherrygrove, and getting to pick a starter Pokemon. Now he got choice of the legendary Kanto starters, just like the infamous former Champion, Red, "I want Charmander." He grabbed the Pokeball from the Professor's hands along with the Pokedex and turned to the nurse, "I'll call him Hotrod,"

"You're off to a good start, young man," The professor smiled, "Just come to my home tomorrow and you'll be all set to start your own Pokemon Journey," Another realization surfaced, "Er...I'm afraid I don't know your name,"

"It's Lucas," the boy replied. The professor's famous eccentricities were famous for a reason.

"Then I'll see you tomorrow, Lucas," Professor Oak shook the young man's hand and left the center.

"I should probably get going, too," Lucas turned to the nurse and lowered his head in gratitude, "Thanks for everything, ma'am,"

"It was no problem. I hope to see you again, Lucas," The nurse smiled.

Lucas left the center and put the Pokedex in his back pocket before he sent Gizmo to his Pokeball. He placed one Pokeball in either hand and looked down at his new friends. It was like a dream. He was beginning to think this wasn't real, that maybe he died without realizing it on the ship, or was concussed somewhere, still in Eterna Forest. As he walked through the city and placed the Pokemon on his belt, reality finally set in. His brother's house was straight ahead of him, and Lucas's old hatreds came swarming back, adding more drag to his feet in addition to the exhaustion. He paused in front of his sibling's home, completely unwilling to knock on the door. He did not want to live here. He did not want to deal with his pain-in-the-ass brother. He would have rather taken another stint in Juvey. He wanted right that second to start his Pokemon Journey. The one he wanted since he was little, the one stolen by John to begin with. After what seemed like eternity, the Mohawk-bearing boy scolded himself for acting like a sissy and finally knocked on the door.

"Well if it isn't little Lulu!" John threw open the door with mock surprise. Lucas gritted his teeth, he hated that nickname even more than he already hated his brother., "Guess since you're here that means the cops didn't bust you, Delinquent. Well, you better come inside,"

Lucas swore heavily under his breath as he stepped through the threshold and examined his new hell. The house was seemingly a shrine to John. The walls were covered with photos of various tournaments and events, and the shelves were filled medals and trophies. Like some kind of sick joke, there was a giant photo of John over the fireplace with a few of his Pokemon. His older brother was three years older than him at nineteen. In addition to being older, he was larger, being almost a foot and a half taller and at least fifty pounds heavier out of pure muscle. The two barely looked like brothers anymore. It had been at least three years since John and Lucas had seen each other and a lot had changed, including John apparently taking up weightlifting. When they were much younger they had looked very similar with the same colored hair and eyes, but now they were totally different, not just in appearance but in attitude. Lucas noticed John had managed to become an even bigger jackass, "So what was so important that you didn't pick me up at Canaclave?"

"They want to turn the old Galactic lab here into a battle facility. As a former Champion they wanted my opinions about it. The meeting was scheduled today," John shrugged as he closed the door and followed Lucas through the living room.

"Mom is going to be thrilled to hear that was your 'important reason'," Lucas commented wryly.

"I've got at least fifty more free passes before the Folks get angry at me, with all the stuff you've done," John snapped back, "That hair alone with worth five, not counting your new tats and piercings. What the hell were you thinking anyway? No wonder you ended up in Juvenile Hall,"

Lucas ignored the comment, "So where's my room?"

"Upstairs and to the right," John pointed out, "But before anything we're going to go over a few ground rules. The reason you're here is because you screwed up, big time. I'm not Mom or Dad so I'm not going to baby you like they have. If you mess up again I will kick your ass without a second thought. First off, you're on your own in terms of food. I always keep stuff in the fridge, but I'm not your chef, I'm not going to cook for you. Second, I'm not your maid. If your crap is all over the place I'll just throw it away. Third, you're going to get a job. I don't care that you aren't in school, but if your ass isn't in a school chair it's bringing home a paycheck. And finally while you are in my house you are a goddamn saint. You aren't to get so much as a jaywalking ticket. If the cops bust you for something and bring you back here you'll be wishing they would have just shot you in the act. Am I clear?"

"Crystal. You don't have to worry about me being in your way, I'm not going to be here long,"

"Keep telling yourself that, but the Folks aren't going to let you go home anytime soon," The younger brother started climbing up the steps when John noticed the bulge in his brother's back pocket. He tackled the smaller boy into a headlock and pulled the Pokedex out, "What the hell? You're stealing now? Listen, Mom and Dad may have let you get away with this bullshit, but I sure as hell am not,"

"I didn't steal it!" Lucas gasped, "It's mine!"

"Don't lie to me twerp! Don't forget I'm your last chance," John snarled as he tightened his grip, "Now where did you get it?"

"I'm not lying! Professor Oak gave it to me!" Lucas wheezed, his older brother's grip was beginning to make him light-headed, "And I don't steal!"

"Like I'm supposed to believe that. You stuffed a kid in his locker and tied him up so he couldn't call for help. Because theft is such a far jump from psychotic acts like that," John finally let Lucas up and let him catch his breath.

"He got what he deserved,"

"What? You actually have justification for what you did?"

"He was throwing rocks at a nest of baby Pidgey," Lucas finally admitted, "I warned him to stop. He would have killed them if I didn't. I stuffed him in the locker as a lesson. There was no point in telling Mom and Dad what really happened because they wouldn't have believed me anyway. The guy was an 'honor student' and the principal's had an out for me ever since he caught me making out with his daughter,"

"Argh, Lulu!" John pinched the bridge of his nose and grimaced, "You were willing to go to Juvey a third time over _Pidgey_? Why do you have to act like such a dumbass? Nobody, not even a trainer is going to out on a limb over Pidgey. I wouldn't do that and I'm a Champion for crissake!"

"I know _you_ wouldn't," Lucas snapped back acidly. He eyed the Pokedex in his brother's hand, trying to figure out a way he could snatch it back.

"What's _that_ supposed to mean?" John asked warningly. His stance became threatening as he lowered his arm to his side and glared at his brother and his accusation.

Suddenly from within Lucas all the hatred, the anger and the resentment came boiling to the surface. All the feelings he had kept to himself for the past several years about his brother and his parents rose up and spilled out of the teen like a venom, "You didn't even like Pokemon! You only became a trainer because it was an excuse to get out of school for a little while. You were always better at me at everything: better at sports, better at school, mom and dad even liked you better, and then you go out and become this big Champion,"

John was startled by his little brother's revelation. The stunned moment of silence transformed into indignation and he roared back, "That's a bullshit excuse. Me being the 'better brother' was just a nice, easy way of not having to try at anything. All your life you've been blaming everybody else for your problems. That's why you got expelled, that's why you've been to Juevy two times. That's why you do all these dumbass things and are always getting in trouble, because it's always someone else's fault!"

"That's not true! I only do the things I do so Mom and Dad will stop comparing me to you! I'm never going to be good enough for them, John! And when you became a trainer it was just another thing for them that I would fail at compared to you—the one thing that I liked and you didn't. The one thing that was special to me. You took away the only thing I loved! I'll never forgive you for that!"

"Then prove me wrong. Go out and prove to me that you're not a loser. If you love Pokemon so damn much then you won't be afraid to try. Then maybe you'll be as good as me at something and you can finally stop using me as an accuse for your suck-ass life,"

"No," Lucas lowered his gaze and stared at the floor before composing himself, "No I'm going to do better than that. I'm going to go out and become the champion of four leagues. You're only champion of three. I'm going to go to Hoenn when you never did. And then I'm going to come back and kick your ass with this Eevee," he reached into his pants pocket and pulled out the Pokeball containing Gizmo. He heaved it in front of him and it opened with a flash. The small brown normal-type materialized and stood loyally before his new trainer, "Then I'm going to show the world that you're not some perfect god like Mom and Dad make you out to be, and that I'm not just some failure!"

John looked at the Eevee with a smirk. He pulled off one of the Pokeballs off of his belt and tossed it casually, "Go Nidoking!"

The massive, dense monster nearly crushed a coffee table as it threw its head back and roared violently. Lucas could tell the behemoth was high-level, as high as level 80, and his own Pokemon was only level 12. If John would command his beast to attack, Gizmo would be knocked out instantly. Lucas held his ground, but if John would make a move, he wouldn't hesitate to bring his little animal back. This was his fight, not Gizmo's, and he wouldn't see him get hurt just so Lucas wouldn't damage his pride. Much to his shock though, there was not an ounce of fear in Gizmo's face. He took a stance, ready for battle, and would attack if Lucas gave the word. Neither Pokemon nor Trainer were going to back down. John realized this as well. He sneered and recalled Nidoking, "All right Little Lulu, we have an agreement. Go on your journey, I won't tell Mom and Dad you're wandering the countryside. But if you screw up or get scared you come back here and have to live by my rules. And you never get to complain about me or about how much your life sucks ever again,"

Lucas nodded in curt agreement, "Now give me my damn Pokedex,"

"I still don't believe that _the_ Professor Oak gave this thing to you, but I'll give you the benefit of the doubt that you didn't swipe it from some poor trainer," John casually tossed the device back to Lucas, who caught it frantically and glared back at his brother for his callous treatment of the valuable device, "You might as well settle in for the evening, Delinquent, tomorrow is a big day for you,"

"Screw that," Lucas replied, "I'm leaving tonight. I don't want to spend a single night in this shrine to yourself you've got going on. My journey starts now,"

With that he marched back towards the door stuck out his tongue and flipped his brother off. When his little brother slammed the door behind him, John shook his head and flopped on the couch.


	3. Chapter 3 The Journey Begins

Chapter 3: The Journey Begins

Occasionally, people do symbolic acts in a futile attempt to maintain their honor or dignity, but in the end only further their problems. Such was the case of Lucas storming out of his brother's house in an act of defiance. He may have shown his brother he was not going to be treated like a failure anymore by his 'perfect' older sibling, but he also lost a place to stay for the evening. Lucas thought about going to the Pokemon Center, which was fairly typical for a Trainer, but he also didn't want to have to explain to the kind nurse that he had gotten into a fight with his brother again. He didn't need to burden anyone with his problems. The young man figured that if Trainers spend much of their time outdoors anyway, he might as well get used to it and sleep in an alley. He found one between a couple of houses that wasn't too trashed, noisy or noticeable. He spread out the sleeping bag he kept in his duffle and got ready to go to sleep. The evening was much cooler than he anticipated, and his rebellious sense of fashion prevented him from owning clothing that had sleeves. Something he was now reconsidering with his new circumstances. The cold prevented him from sleeping when he got an idea.

"Come on out Hotrod," the teen's new Charmander left his Pokeball and stood in front of his trainer. It was the first time the boy had met his Pokemon face to face. The fire-type tipped his head curiously. "Come're little dude," Lucas called gently. The little fire lizard happily ran over to his trainer. Lucas hugged it strongly and was grateful he had picked a fire-type. The Charmander's body was incredibly warm, and the fire on the tip of his tail provided a second source of heat.

Not to leave anyone out, Lucas summoned Gizmo and clung to both of his new friends. He felt he could finally go to sleep when he heard a soft tapping coming close to him. From around the corner was an old man with mud on his face walking with a cane. Around his belt were a toolbox and a safety helmet and slung over his shoulder was a pickax. He seemed to immediately notice Lucas and walked over to him. The Mohawk-bearing teen expected the old-timer to chastise him, or call him out for being suspicious-looking. Lucas sat up and cautiously waited for the man's next move, "Hi there, Young Trainer. What are you doing outside this evening? Shouldn't you be in the Pokemon Center?"

"The Pokemon Center was full," Lucas lied. The old man didn't seem to believe him, but said nothing about it.

"If you need a place to stay I can suggest the Underground Explorers Club. It's a place for geology enthusiasts as well as amateur Pokemon Paleontologists. I'm the founder and the president," the old man stated. He seemed strange, but harmless so Lucas agreed to follow him. The old man led the teen through Eterna City. Before he hadn't seen much of it as he missed much of it running to the Pokemon Center and then was distracted by his new Pokemon and dealing with his brother, but now he got a chance to really appreciate the beauty of the city. Past all the buildings the massive peak of Mt. Coronet was visible with various hills appearing around and in the city. In the center of town was a massive bronze statue of Pokemon, but as far as Lucas could see the plaque that described the piece of art was missing. Finally, just little south of the Pokemon Center stood the Underground Explorers Club.

The club itself was far more official looking than the teen was expecting, though there was a homey feel to the place. The members were quite diverse. Some were nerdy looking boys with thick glasses, others were big burly hikers with faces muddier than the old man's. Several members were chatting peacefully inside with each other at tables in what appeared to be a small library, and around the bookshelves were glass display cases that immediately caught Lucas's attention, "Wow are those real?"

"I know an explorer when I see one," The old man beamed triumphantly, "Those are in fact real Pokemon fossils,"

"That is too cool! I love the prehistoric Pokemon, whenever my family went to Kanto I'd always make them go to the museum in Pewter City. That's why I got my tattoo," Lucas pointed out the frozen battle between the skeletons of Aerodactyl and Kabutops inked on his right arm.

"Those were all dug up around here, actually," The old man explained, "Underground, between here and Oreburgh, are dozens of caves and tunnels, we Underground Explorers go into the caves and find all sorts of things: Shards, Evolutionary stones and occasionally these fossils." The old man gestured with his cane, "There are rooms in the back if you and your Pokemon want to rest,"

"Thanks a lot, sir, I really appreciate it," Lucas said genuinely.

"Not at all, I told you I know an explorer when I see one. And call me Grant,"

"I'm Lucas,"

"Well Lucas, have a good night,"

The next morning Lucas woke up fairly early. He wanted to get to Professor Oak's as soon as possible so he could legally start catching and training his Pokemon. As he put away the folding cot he had slept on he noticed a photograph on the wall. He could tell if was an older picture, Grant looked a lot younger, and standing next to him were an even younger man with a little boy with glasses on his shoulder. All of them have varying level of dirt on their faces and the little boy was wearing a safety helmet far too big for his head. He figured this must be Grant's family.

As he prepared to leave he saw that Grant was already awake and eating breakfast, "Good Morning Lucas, care for breakfast?"

"No thanks, I've got to get going,"

"Before you leave I have something for you," Grant reached under the table and pulled out a toolbox similar to the one he had on his belt yesterday, "This is an Explorer Kit. If you ever want to go looking for your own fossils in the hills, use this"

"Thanks, but what can I do to repay you?" Lucas took the gift nervously.

"You don't need to do anything. As long as new explorers come into this world, I'll be happy. Good luck with your journey Lucas, and come visit me again sometime,"

"I will," the teen promised.

Grant's kindness had invigorated Lucas as he rushed to find the Professor's house. Luckily it wasn't far from the Underground Explorers Club. The teen didn't have a clock, but based off of the sun's location in the sky he figured it was probably around six o'clock. He debated whether or not to knock the door. On one hand, he couldn't wait to see the professor, on the other, he also didn't want to wake the man up. He didn't have much time to consider his decision when it was made for him. The door opened suddenly, and Professor Oak answered fully dressed, already in his lab coat with a cup of coffee in his hands, "Good morning Lucas, I thought I saw someone lurking around here,"

"Er, sorry Professor," Lucas replied sheepishly, "I'm not here too early, am I?"

"Oh no, been awake for hours. I've always been an early riser, like yourself," Professor Oak gestured for Lucas to come in.

"Actually I usually don't wake up before noon. I just couldn't wait to come see you. I was too excited to get my license," the teen admitted as he came through the door. The professor's house looked very much like Lucas had always imagined. It was hectic, crammed with books and specimens and a computer hummed noisily in the back. It just didn't seem as lived-in as the boy figured his house in Pallet probably was.

"I like to see that kind of excitement. It means for sure I definitely made the right choice. I had your license express-mailed to me around midnight last night. I just have to remember where I put it," Professor Oak set his coffee cup on a small table next to plate with his eaten breakfast and an open box with some sort of electronic device slightly propped up by the tissue paper that had cover it.

"What this?" Lucas asked as he picked the device up. He had never seen anything like it before. It was an elongated hexagon with a large screen taking up most of the body. On one side were three buttons with an up arrow, down arrow and a star he assumed to be a confirming button. On the other side was a small, thick stylus snapped into a slot. The bottom of the screen was decorated with a Pokeball icon with the front side being a bright red plastic, with the back being a stark white. He looked it over and noticed an identifying label on the back. 'Pokemon Device. A product from the Silph/Devon corporation.'

"Oh that's the Pokevice. That's supposed to be some new-fangled product for trainers. They come out with things like that every few years and Silph always ends up sending me their prototypes. I guess it's Silph/Devon now, after the merger. I never understand why they send me the confounded things, they know I never use them," The professor continued to look through his self-created chaos, "You can have it if you like,"

"Really?" Lucas couldn't understand why suddenly people were being so generous with him. Perhaps being a Trainer did change people's view of him, no matter what he looked like. Lucas dug through the box and found an owner's manual for his new gadget and flipped through it.

'_Pokemon Device or Pokevice, all inclusive media, information and communication device for Pokemon Trainers. Pokevice comes with several preinstalled apps including a map, general guide and encyclopedia of common Trainer questions and topics, video chat, television and watch. Other apps will soon be available and can be downloaded wirelessly. Center screen is touch sensitive to either fingers or a stylus, with additional commands executable via the side buttons,_'

"Pretty sweet," Lucas thought to himself as he put the Pokevice in the vest pocket over his heart. Finding the old note from his brother, he tossed it into a nearby trashcan.

"Ah! Found it!" the professor announced. He came from the kitchen with an envelope in his hand and presented it to Lucas, "Your official Pokemon League Trainer Card. Officially recognizes you as a trainer of the Sinnoh League, allowing you to legally capture, train and battle Pokemon. When Professor Oak asks the League for something, he gets it. Whether it's short notice or not,"

The surreal feeling that had hit Lucas yesterday when he was at the Pokemon Center came back in force. He took the envelope cautiously and carefully opened it. Inside was a red electronic card with a micro-thin LCD screen. On the front was his name and picture as well as the words 'Beginning Level Trainer' on the back were empty pieces of information regarding the amount of Pokemon he had in the system, the amount of battles he's won and his total fortune.

"These new cards are quite nice. As you obtain badges and Pokemon your rank will increase automatically. You won't have to go to a Pokemon Center all the time to constantly get it updated. Of course, you need to go to a League Official if you go to a different region. Different places have different rules about capture and battles, you understand," Professor Oak explained casually as Lucas stared at his card. The old man's words fell on deaf ears as the teen was entranced by the item in his hands. He had wanted this card so much when he was younger it consumed almost all his life. Now he had one. It was his. It was real.

Lucas was startled to discover his cheeks were wet. Without even realizing it, he was crying. Furiously, he rubbed his face, embarrassed that the level of his emotion became outside his control, "Professor, I really appreciate this, if there is anything you want me to do to repay you, just say the word. I owe you so much that I don't think I can ever repay the debt,"

"Nonsense. You're the one doing me the favor. My life's work is to find out as much about Pokemon as there is to know. When I was younger I did it myself. Now I am an old man. My mind is still sharp but my body fails me when I need it most. This is why I send generations of trainers after generations of trainers. To take over my work in the field. This is how we leave a legacy that lasts longer than any life or any statue, by the information we pass on. My legacy and my information is about Pokemon. And when I see someone like you who is willing to help a Pokemon no matter the cost, I can know peacefully my legacy will live on," The professor put a kindly hand on the boy's shoulder, "There is no greater gift you can give me,"After the moment's sentimentality, the professor's tone changed, "Now. In the Sinnoh region the easiest gym is in Oreburgh City, but the closest one is right here in Eterna City. Either way you're going to need to get some supplies so you can start catching Pokemon. Be careful, stay sharp and always take care of your Pokemon,"

"I will, Professor,"

"Good. Then I wish you great luck Lucas, I expect to see a Champion out of you," With Professor Oak's final goodbye, Lucas left the house.

Training meant supplies and Lucas's first stop was at the Pokemon Market. He had to start from zero and was forced to purchase a lot. Potions, antidotes, a badge case. The small fund his mother gave him for the trip to Eterna was just about gone. Lucas only had enough money to buy six Pokeballs, but with the last of his change he made one small frivolous purchase. There was a special kind of Pokeball holder that doubled as a necklace. Putting it on he attached Gizmo's Pokeball to it, so his first Pokemon would always be nearest to him.

With his supplies packed and the last of his money jiggling loose change in his pockets, Lucas headed towards the west of town to start his training.


	4. Chapter 4 Lucas Catches a Pokemon

Chapter 4: Lucas Catches a Pokemon

In all of Lucas's dreams of being a Trainer, he had not expected his journey to start quite as badly as it had. He understood why, of course. Most trainers start out in small towns where the Pokemon were low level and training was easier. Lucas seriously considered backtracking to Jubilife City or starting with the easiest gym in Oreburgh as Professor Oak had suggested. But the boy's funds were too low, and backtracking through the forest without the Cut Hidden Machine was not something Lucas was willing to do. It was just too far. This decision had consequences of course. Around the Eterna Forest and patches of grass on the route between the forest and the city, the Pokemon were already over level 13. Gizmo was level 12, but poor Hotrod was only level 5. That first morning was nothing but an exercise in frustration.

"Go Hotrod!" Lucas throw the Pokeball as a wild Bidoof stumbled across him in the tall grass.

"Char!" Hotrod snarled. The fire-type prepared for battle as the normal-type stared back blankly.

"Hotrod! Use Scratch!" Lucas commanded. Hotrod lunged forward and collided with the Bidoof, drawing his tiny nails against the fluffy Pokemon's face. While he clearly caused some damage to the fluffy creature with giant teeth, the attack did little. The Bidoof retaliated with a fierce Headbutt, just about knocking Hotrod out in one hit, "Okay Hotrod, that's good, now it's time for Gizmo!" The teen called his Charmander back and sent out the Eevee, "Okay Gizmo, you give a Tackle. Really give it to him!"

"Vi vi!" Gizmo nodded and hurled himself against the other normal-type. This knock did significantly more damage than Hotrod's attack. The Bidoof slide across the grass, wobbling as it picked itself back up. In an act of self-preservation it did a Defense Curl to try to improve its defenses. Lucas motioned for another attack and Gizmo tackled again. The Bidoof was now clearly very weak. The teen reached into his pocket and pulled out a Pokeball. He clicked the button once to enlarge it and heaved the ball towards the Bidoof with all his might. The ball bounced of the Pokemon and popped open, pulling the creature inside. It closed with a snap and landed on the ground. Lucas held his breath as the device glowed and shook. Once. Twice. Three times. Four times. His heart began to race as the Pokeball seemed to stop moving. Then suddenly, the device exploded open, with the Bidoof once again standing, blankly staring at the trainer, with the now useless Pokeball in pieces beside him.

"SONUVABITCH!" Lucas roared and clutched his skull in frustration. This scenario had happened roughly the same almost a half dozens times already. Earlier in the morning Hotrod was knocked out by a Bidoof. Then the team knocked out a Wurmple accidentally. A Budew was their next victim and then four subsequent trips to the Pokemon Center after running into the same foul-tempered Dustox. The nurse had said she would like to see Lucas again, though he doubted under those circumstances. Then Lucas's luck changed, and instead of knocking out the Pokemon, a series of Bidoof merely escaped their Pokeballs after being carefully weakened. Lucas was down to his last Pokeball, with no more money to buy any more. Reluctantly, he called Gizmo back and walked away from the Pokemon. As the boy glanced back, he could see the Bidoof had already wandered back into the grass.

Disheartened, the teen walked to the pond covered by the bridge and sat down on a post. He slumped his shoulders as he dwelt on the day's progress. The sun was now high in the sky, signaling it was past noon. The boy closed his eyes and let the day's heat and the slight breezes pass over his body. He could hear a thunking on the planks beside him and opened his eyes to see a Fisherman trainer smiling back at him, "Hi there! It is you. You're the fellow who ran past here yesterday with the Pokemon under his vest. I knew I recognized you because of all those silly bits of metal you having sticking out of your face. Thought to myself 'wow, that boy looks like a hooked Qwilfish, he does.' So if your Pokemon okay?"

The Fisherman's comment made Lucas bristle. He debated on answering the man's question or hurling something large and heavy at the man's head for being so rude. He decided he was too tired and too annoyed to look for something heavy, "He's fine. It was a little scary yesterday, but the people at the Pokemon Centers are superstars at what they do,"

"That's for sure. You gave us Fisherman quite a surprise when you can runnin' down the dock like that. Made me lose my catch. Think it was a Goldeen this time, too. Been wanting one for a while," The Fisherman carried on cheerfully.

"Sorry about that," Lucas said without any ounce of sincerity.

"Not a big deal. Being a Fisherman is all about patience. I'll get another one eventually. I just wanted to see how your Pokemon was doing. Don't see too many kids these days that would run that fast for their critters. Nice to see a kiddo that cares," the Fisherman carried on, "So what'cha doing here anyway, young fella,?

Lucas smirked. He decided the Fisherman wasn't such a jerk after all, "Nursing my wounds. I've been training since earlier this morning and it's been a disaster. I've got only one Pokeball left and there's no way I can buy more,"

"Ah, been there, been there," The fisherman sat down on the bridge and pulled out a rod, "Sometimes when you're unlucky on land you're more lucky with water. Why don't you try fishing?"

"Don't got a rod,"

"Well, you can have one of mine," The Fisherman reached into his things and pulled out a fishing rod that had clearly seen better days. It was bent, slightly rusted and held together with duct tape, "My wife wanted me to throw this one out. Might not be the newest or the shiniest, but it can still hook a water-type when needed to,"

"Sure," Lucas shrugged and slid off the post to sit next to the Fisherman. He took the rod and cast it into the water. Fishing was definitely more relaxing than chasing Bidoof through the grass, but it was also incredibly boring to sit and stare at the waterline. The Fisherman recast his rod several times, pulling back to see there were no bits on his hook. Lucas copied the motion with about as much success as the Fisherman. Just when Lucas was about to give up and move on, he felt a tug on the line, "Hey, I think I got a bite!"

"Pull back carefully kiddo, you don't want it to get away!"

Lucas obeyed his new teacher and carefully reeled in his catch. At the other end of the line was a flopping orange fish with wide eyes, "Oh awesome! It's a Magikarp!"

"Ah, you like Magikarp, aye? Usually, almost no one but Fisherman catch them. And other trainers make fun of us for using them," The Fisherman mused as he watched Lucas struggle with the fish.

"Nah, I think Magikarp are cool. Everyone underestimates them and thinks they are useless, just like they do me," Lucas finally yanked the Pokemon onto the dock, "They are way tougher than anyone realizes," Lucas yanked the Pokeball off of his necklace and tossed it towards the Magikarp, "Go Gizmo!"

Gizmo popped out of his Pokeball ready for battle. The Magikarp just seemed desperate to go back into the water. Lucas commanded his Eevee to use Tackle over and over again. The Magikarp just flopped in place, using Splash in retaliation, doing nothing to defend itself. Lucas's attitude towards the battle was like any other, he took it seriously and planned his attacks carefully.

The Fisherman watched admiringly, "Good job boy, Magikarp might not be strong fighters, but take more work than just a one-hit wonder,"

When the fish's flopping became more sluggish and weaker, Lucas reached into his pocket and pulled out the final Pokeball. He looked down at the object and grimaced, "Please let this work," He looked towards the Magikarp and called out as a last act of desperation, "Listen Magikarp, I'm a good guy, and I really want to be your Trainer. Please let me catch you,"

The Magikarp showed no sign whether it heard Lucas or not. The boy took a deep breath and chucked the Pokeball. The ball collided dully with the fish and sucked it inside. The ball once again snapped closed and landed on the docks, rolling around slightly and threatening to fall into the water. Lucas chewed on his bottom lip as he waited for the process to finish. One shake. Two. A third. A fourth. Then one fifth violent jerk and a loud 'click'. Lucas exhaled. He waited just a little bit more, still sure the Magikarp would pop out somehow, wasting his last Pokeball.

"What are you waiting for kid, that Magikarp is yours!" The Fisherman nudged Lucas forward with his elbow, almost causing the teen to fall over.

The man's actions brought him back to reality, "I-it's mine? It worked?" Lucas ran over to pick up the Pokeball and held it triumphantly above his head, "Whoooo! Hell yeah! I've got a Magikarp and I caught it! Look out world, 'cause I'm going to be the best!"

The Fisherman laughed as Lucas did a victory dance, "I remember when I caught my first Pokemon. It was so many years ago but I'll never forget it. I think I was just as happy as you are, even did the same stupid dance,"

"I'm going to call him Franky," Lucas announced as he held the Pokeball in both hands. He released Hotrod and let the Magikarp out of its ball, "Franky, welcome to the team,"

Gizmo and Hotrod curiously greeted their new teammate and chirped happily at the floppy orange fish. Lucas picked up the heavy water Pokemon and gave him a loving squeeze. And though Magikarp are almost expressionless, Franky almost looked like he was smiling.


	5. Chapter 5 Training

Chapter 5: Training

If someone would have told Lucas three days ago he was going to be a Pokemon Trainer, he would have punched them for bringing up a painful wound and resurrecting a dead hope. Yet now, he was heading back to the Pokemon Center with the first Pokemon he ever caught in battle. Most trainers would not be too excited for their first caught Pokemon to be a Magikarp, but Lucas was thrilled. Lucas liked just about all Pokemon, finding each species special and amazing, his childhood dream to catch and train as many as he could find. To make as many friends as he could. He had a particular fondness for Magikarp. Magikarp were weak Pokemon with low attack, low defense and weak moves, but Lucas knew they were special, that they had an inner strength and while they seemed useless they weren't. Just like him.

As he got closer to the Pokemon Center in Eterna City he started thinking about his life and the events of the last couple of days. Lucas had always felt like people were judging him and criticizing him, just like his parents had. Treating him like a criminal even before he was ever first arrested. The only people he liked and trusted were his gang back in his home in Cherrygrove, the people he was most upset to leave when being sent to live with his brother. Yet in past few days the people of Eterna City have treated him with kindness and respect. Professor Oak helping him become a trainer, Grant giving him a place to stay and welcoming him to the Explorer's Club and now the Fisherman who had asked if Gizmo was okay and then gave him a rod and taught him about fishing. Even if he were a Trainer now, he was still the same person on the inside, and yet people were showing him generosity and friendship. He began to wonder if his jaded attitude with his own family made him judge others as badly as he himself felt judged. As began reevaluating his life, he started feeling extremely guilty for all the things he did in his small town.

"Oh, you caught a Magikarp," the nurse stated happily as she took Lucas's Pokemon for examination and healing at the Pokemon Center.

"Yeah, his name is Franky," Lucas replied, coming out of his self-reflection.

"Well remember to take good care of him," the nurse reminded the boy as she took the team to the healing machine. As she went behind the counter Lucas went up a vending machine and considered getting a drink. He reached into his pocket and compared his funds against the drinks' prices. As he put remembered the depletion of his funds and did some calculation in his head, he got a sinking feeling in his stomach. The nurse soon returned from the machine and called Lucas over, "Here are your Pokemon. Good as new,"

"Thanks," Lucas said sadly and walked over to a couch within the center and summoned out his three Pokemon. All three of his creatures looked at him with curiosity and admiration as he addressed them, "Guys, I'm afraid we have some bad news. This," the Mohawked teen showed the handful of coins to his team, "Is the the last of my money. After this it's all gone. Once it's gone that means I won't be able to train anymore. I won't be able to buy Pokeballs, medicines, training devices, nothing. As of now I can't even buy a soda. Once I'm broke that means I will have to go to John's, like it or not. I don't think he'll make me get rid of you, but that means the end of the journey. No badges, no championships, no more exploring. That is going to really blow, but I think we can squeeze two days of out this before that happens. So while we can't go very far, let's work as hard as possible and do as much training as we can, okay? Just to see what we're really made of,"

Gizmo, Hotrod and even Franky replied back adamantly. Though he hadn't had them very long they were already extremely loyal to their Trainer.

He picked all three up and told them softly, "Thank you, I love you guys,"

Hotrod and Franky returned to their Pokeballs while Gizmo chose to stay on Lucas's shoulder. He left the center yet again and headed through the opposite side of Eterna City, closer to Mt. Coronet. While the mountain itself was impassable at his level, there was some tall grass and similarly leveled Pokemon as the route outside the forest. Lucas and his team worked hard for the next several hours, challenging himself against the Pokemon that lived in the area. It was hard between Gizmo's small move pool, Franky's low attack and defense and Hotrod's low level, but Lucas wasn't going to give up, and his determination inspired his team to work even harder and push themselves further. As the sky began to become more orange, pushing the afternoon into evening, Gizmo and Franky pushed themselves to level 15 and Hotrod reached Level 10 with now knowing some fire-type moves. With Lucas satisfied with their progress, he decided to head back into the city.

"Hey you!" Lucas heard a high-pitched voice call to him as he climbed over some rocks. He turned around and saw a smug looking little kid with a backwards cap staring straight at him.

"What do you want?" Lucas sighed as came back down the rock he had an especially hard time scaling.

"What do you think I want? I'm a Trainer and you obviously are, with that Eevee on your head. Let's battle!" The kid obviously was trying to come across as tough but was seeming more bratty, "And don't think you can walk away, once I challenge you, you have to accept. League rules,"

"I _know_ the League rules," Lucas rolled his eyes. He pulled off a Pokeball from his belt and presented it forward, "But a battle sounds just fine by me. I've been itching to find out how good I really am,"

The kid sneered and pulled out his own Pokeball, "Go! Starly!"

A small gray bird emerged from his opponent's ball and flapped its wings energetically. It hovered in the air in a determined battle stance, waiting for a move from Lucas and a word from its trainer. The teen responded to the move by throwing his own Pokeball on the ground, "Go Franky!"

The teen's Magikarp flopped out of its ball and twitched listlessly on the ground. The young boy stared, stunned at the Pokemon his opponent selected. He looked at Franky and then up to Lucas, "Is this some kind of joke? Just because I'm a Youngster doesn't mean it's fair to treat me like I'm an idiot," then the boy crossed his arms and increased his obnoxious grin, "Unless you're the idiot and don't have any better Pokemon,"

"Oh, screw you, you little twerp. I summoned Franky for a reason," Lucas snapped back. He usually made it a point to not hit people much younger than he was, but he was willing to make an exception for this brat. In addition to losing, this kid also needed a swift kick in the backside.

"Hey don't swear at me!" the boy huffed, "I'm only a little kid,"

"Well, _sorry_ if I offend your virgin ears, but I am going to swear as much as I damn well please. Especially by some twerpy shrimp with as an annoying personality as you," Lucas brought Franky out and pulled the second ball off of his belt, "Hotrod, it's your move!"

"Starly use Gust!" the Youngster ordered as Lucas' Charmander materialized into the battle. Before the small fire lizard could react, the flying Pokemon flapped its wings together viciously forming a small dust devil. The tiny tornado collided with Hotrod and slammed him to the ground.

"You can do this Hotrod. That was just a love tap, show that feather duster what a real attack looks like. Use Scratch," Lucas commanded energetically. Hotrod picked himself up and shook its head to regain its senses. Quickly, the small Pokemon hopped on some rocks and launched itself toward the Starly, its tiny claws bared. The bird Pokemon was too startled to dodge the unexpected move and was knocked from the air with the Charmander's nails.

"Use Gust again!" the Youngster reacted. Starly jumped back into the air and created another tornado. Hotrod was more prepared for this attack, and though it landed directly, its damage was much lower.

"Okay, let's stop stringing this kid along. Ember, and put some heat into it," Hotrod ran towards the Starly again, tumbling forward and swinging his tail like a bat. Bits of flame came off of his tail and rained down like hail, touching the bird. The feathers caught on fire and caused a burn. The hit clearly was critical as the Starly flopped on the ground, unable to make another move.

"Oh, Starly..." the Youngster whimpered, "You bully! You'll pay for that! Go Bidoof!"

"Me the bully huh? You challenged me," Lucas mumbled under his breath and rubbed his temple to try to ease off his impatience, "Hotrod, Ember again,"

"Bidoof, Headbutt that meanie!" the Bidoof looked towards Hotrod with a glazed over look as the fire-type repeated the charring attack, though not as strongly this time. The normal-type took the hit, winced and then fought back with its Headbutt. The Headbutt just about winded Hotrod, he gripped the ground with his claws to try to steady himself.

Lucas could see this Bidoof was fairly strong, and Hotrod was not in good shape. Not wanting to risk getting knocked out for the sake of getting in a second hit, he called his Pokemon back, "Okay, nice set up, let's relay this fight to Gizmo and call it a day," The Charmander nodded wearily and allowed itself to be summoned. The teen motioned to the Eevee on his shoulder and Gizmo jumped into the fray.

"Boy, what a wimpy-looking Pokemon," the Youngster remarked, "Go ahead with another Headbutt, Bidoof, this won't last long,"

"Gizmo, Tackle," Lucas said through gritted teeth. The last of his patience was running out and his temper threatening to explode. Gizmo appeared just as insulted at the comment as Lucas was. With an angry 'Vi!' he swerved to the side and completely avoided the Bidoof's attack. The small Pokemon spun on his heels and slammed the buck-toothed normal-type in the back.

"Ah Bidoof! Use Headbutt and don't miss this time!"

"Again."

Despite the Youngster's insistence, Bidoof missed Gizmo yet again. The tiny Eevee hopped up before the contact could be made, and slammed his paws into his opponent. The boy commanded another Headbutt while the teen continued his order of Tackles. Of this exchange of blows, Gizmo only was touched twice. The Bidoof was too slow and the Eevee's evasiveness too high for the result of battle to be any different. With a final critical Tackle the Bidoof slumped over in exhaustion. Lucas waited for the Youngster to send out another opponent, but the boy just stood there. The battle was over, the boy had no more Pokemon.

The Youngster looked from his Bidoof to Lucas with horror and shock in his face. His bottom lip shook, unable to speak. Gizmo ran back to Lucas and the teen picked up the Pokemon and scratched his head in reward. The Mohawk-bearing youth strode menacingly towards the small boy, stern look in his face. "Kid, you are an annoying little pain-in-the-ass. If you keep this attitude up you're going to end up in a world of hurt," The teen thrust his right hand forward, palm up. The Youngster jumped back in alarm, "Probably end up a lot like me, which isn't a good thing. Your Pokemon are pretty strong and it's clear they love you, so that means you're not a total lost cause,"

"H-here," the Youngster stuttered, depositing some bills and a few coins into Lucas's hand.

"Kid, I'm trying to shake your hand like a man, not rob you!" Lucas groaned.

"I know that, but you won. When an opponent beats you, you have to give them ten percent of the cash you have on hand, League rules," the Youngster explained.

"What?" Lucas looked back at him as blankly, "You mean I get _money_ for winning?"

"You didn't know that?" the Youngster blinked in surprise, his annoying smirk returning to his face, "Wow, what kind of idiot are you? Everyone knows that about training,"

"Oh, shut up! It's been ten years since the last time I was in Pokemon School. Let's see how much you remember about today ten years from now!" Lucas growled. He stuffed the cash in his vest and gestured threateningly to the boy, "Now go to the center and get your Pokemon healed up before I change my mind about not drop-kicking you!"

The Youngster summoned his Bidoof back to his Pokeball and scurried over the rocks towards Eterna City. As the last of the boy's shadow vanished, Lucas returned his thoughts to the important piece of information he just rediscovered. If it was true that after winning a Pokemon Battle he's entitled to money, that meant he wouldn't have to go back to John's after all. It made sense, after all, how else would John be able to afford the nice house he lived in if it weren't from his winnings? John didn't work as far as the teen knew. Smiling, Lucas headed towards the Pokemon Center himself, planning to spend the next day trying to find as many opponents as he could.


	6. Challenge of the Eterna City

Chapter Six: Challenge of the Eterna City Gym

The next morning Lucas left the Pokemon Center as early as he could. He still wasn't used to waking up before midday, but he was a man on a mission. When he returned to the center after his first battle with the Youngster, he used his Pokevice's Trainer Guide to look up all the rules about training, battles and most important for his purposes, fees and reward money. What the mouthy little squirt had said was right, winning in a Pokemon battle guaranteed 10% of the opponent's case. This information meant that the teen would not be forced to go back to his brother's home, and his rules, so long as he could keep winning, and keep getting money to support his journey.

He scoured the areas outside of Eterna City for trainers, challenging anyone he came across. By the middle of the day he had enough cash to not only restock his supplies, he could also get a decent cache of Pokeballs, and his first cheeseburger since leaving Cherrygrove City. Restocked, he was able to reinvest his efforts in catching more Pokemon, both filling in his Pokedex and rounding out his team. In addition to Gizmo, Franky and Hotrod, Lucas now had a Wurmple, a Budew a Chingling and a Bidoof in his Pokemon Storage system. Battling other trainers had a second benefit, however, his Pokemon were growing much faster now and after dinner, Lucas decided to try his skills against the Eterna City Gym.

Lucas was not familiar with the Gym Leaders and high level Trainers of the Sinnoh region. Before his parents had shipped him off he had never been here before. Standing in front of a large building marked 'Gym' next to a construction site, Lucas read the sign in front of it. He glanced at the list of previous winning trainers: some girl named Dawn, another boy called Lucas and of course, John's name. Then he looked at the important information he was looking for.

_Eterna City Gym_

_Leader: Gardenia, the Master of Vivid Plant Pokemon_

"I take it that means the leader here uses Grass-type," Lucas mentioned to Gizmo who nodded 'Vi vi' in agreement. The young man considered his team. Hotrod was almost level 16 now, and the Wurmple he caught earlier in the afternoon had already evolved into Silcoon and would soon evolve again. He wasn't sure how strong Gardenia would be, but he figured he wouldn't know unless he took the challenge. Taking a breath and smiling to Gizmo, Lucas walked up to the massive doors, heaved them open and marched determinedly inside.

The gym itself looked exactly like what Lucas would imagine a Grass Gym to be: lots of plants and flowers and AstroTurf carpet and very bright. The only thing that surprised him was how small the Gym was, especially how large the building appeared to be from the outside. Three girls were chatting nonchalantly near what appeared to be a small doorway when they suddenly stopped and looked at Lucas.

"Wow, that guy is really creepy looking," the one in a plaid skirt quipped.

"He looks like a troublemaker, look at those tattoos on his arm," said the one in a long dress.

"And his hair! Ugh!" sniffed the third who looked like a girl-scout.

_Bitches_. Lucas thought silently as he ground his teeth, "I'm here to challenge Gardenia, where is she?"

The one in the plaid skirt walked towards Lucas, "Gardenia is in the back room, the real gym. In order to get to her you have to solve the puzzle of the Gym. And you have to face all three of _us_,"

"Fine by me, beauty queen. I'll take you all on right now, all at the same time if you want. I don't like to be insulted. Especially by a bunch of stuck-up bitches like you who pretend I'm not even here when they do it, instead of at least telling me right in my face," Lucas snarled. He crossed his arms and glared at the trainer viciously.

The girl merely smiled, "Oh no, it's not going to be that easy. It's true that we're gorgeous, but it doesn't mean we aren't tough. So I wouldn't get so cocky just yet, Pin Cushion,"

The three girls walked through the doorway without another word and disappeared, shutting the door behind him. Lucas stood and growled angrily. The people of Eterna may have been kind to him so far, but these three girls were exactly like the kind of people he hated. He cooled himself down when a thought entered his head. These were the kinds of people he hated most all right, making it all the more fun once he would beat them. With a triumphant smile he headed towards the door and tried to open it.

It was locked.

Lucas turned the knob again and it clicked stubbornly in his hand. He tried to shove the door open with his shoulder, but it was heavier than it looked. With in impatient grumble he kicked it and heard some strange noises from the wall, like gears shifting. He kicked the door again, and he noticed that a flower pot right next to the wall was now half a foot away. Suddenly Lucas realized while the door wasn't going to open, to entire wall seemed to move. Finding a clear spot in the wall, the teen placed both hands on the surface, and preparing to strain his muscles, pushed forward as hard as he could. The wall moved easily and turned like a revolving door at a fancy hotel. Lucas kept pushing until a second doorway appeared to his right. Unlike the other doorway, this one was unblocked.

"Oh, so you figured it out. You might look like a criminal but at least you're not stupid," It was the girl in the scout uniform. She was standing above him on a white platform, looking down her nose at him. Lucas just glared at her, "But you're not going to get further than me. Go Budew!"

"Go Franky!" Lucas summoned his Magikarp, the orange fish flopping helplessly on the grass of the Gym.

"Oh, this won't take long at all," the girl giggled.

Lucas just smiled at her, "Franky return! Go Chingling!" the bell-like Pokemon hopped out of its ball with a gentle chime and the girl looked at it fearfully.

"Budew use Mega Drain!" the girl said frantically. The tiny plant chirped obediently and used its attack. Chingling sat helplessly as its energy was drained away. Though it was unable to fight the attack, Chingling's strength was still high, "Use Mega Drain again!"

"Chingling Confusion!" Lucas ordered. The girl had every right to act as frantically as she had, Budew was part poison-type, and before the grass Pokemon could use its second attack, the psychic wave hit full force and knocked it out with one hit. The battle was over.

The girl slumped to her knees and groaned.

"No smart comments to say to the 'criminal' now, huh?" Lucas said smugly. The girl just looked up at him with a glare and pressed a button on the side of the platform where she had been standing. The moving wall clicked and whirled and when Lucas glanced back the doorway he had entered, he could see a new doorway appear.

Next up was the woman in the long dress. Like the girl-scout, she was standing on a high platform, her appearance condescending and confident, "You may have gotten past Melissa but I'm a much more experienced Trainer. You're ages away from ever seeing Gardenia. You will learn to respect the grace and power of grass-types. Go Budew!"

"Grass-types I respect, it's people like you I don't. And at the end of this battle you'll learn to respect me! Go Chingling!" Lucas tossed out his Pokeball and his small psychic-type appeared again. It was not as chipper as it was in the previous battle, but it still had plenty of energy left, "Use Confusion!"

"Megadrain!" Like the previous battle, the seed Pokemon was just too slow and disadvantaged to survive. The wave of psychic energy made direct contact first, and the Budew was knocked out instantly. The woman seemed unfazed, "Go Roselia! Razor Leaf!"

Budew's evolution appeared before Lucas and his Pokemon in a flourish of petals and movement. Though beautiful, the teen knew that this larger Pokemon would be more dangerous than it's smaller, unevolved counterpart, "Chingling use Confusion again!"

Chingling did not have the speed advantage in this round. It's attack was unable to hit first as the Roselia's sharp leaves collided with it, leaving a devastating blow. For this round Lucas would not win. Lucas recalled his hardworking creature and sent out the next of his team, his Silcoon. The elegant lady looked cautiously at the bug-type, "Roselia, Poison Sting,"

One of the flowers on Roselia's arm opened slightly, and dozens of toxic barbs flew and hit the Silcoon. The immobile Pokemon twitched in pain, and began to glow. As it glowed her shape morphed and a pair of graceful wings began flapping. Lucas pumped his fist in the air, "Welcome to the world Beautifly! Now use Gust!"

The bug Pokemon rose gently towards the ceiling before flapping its wings dramatically. Like the Starly in yesterday's battle, a small tornado formed from the Pokemon's powerful moments and rushed forward toward the Rose Pokemon. Roselia was caught up in the mini-storm and dropped painfully on the ground. The woman was not about to quit, "Poison Sting again. If you poison it, it's history!"

"Not today! Beautifly, Silver Wind this time!" Lucas commanded. Beautfly drifted upwards, out of the range of the Roselia's attack before flapping its wings again. This time, rather than a small storm, a cloud of silver dust flaked off of the Pokemon's wings and engulfed the Roselia. The Roselia coughed and tried to motion the dust away, but it keeled over with a thud. The woman recalled Roselia and crossed her arms and pouted. The teen grinned triumphantly at the woman, and held out his arm for his Pokemon to land. Beautifly landed on his arm and hopped happily to the boy's shoulder. He nuzzled it with his cheek, "I've never seen a Beautifly up close before. Where we come from we only have Butterfree. But I'm happy to have you, you're really pretty and I'm really proud of you,"

The Beautifly nuzzled affectionately back with Gizmo climbing to Lucas's other shoulder to meet his new teammate. The woman stared at the scene and smiled. She pressed the button on her platform and confronted Lucas, "I'm very sorry I was so rude to you. We've had Trainers who look like you come through in the past, and they've all been terrible Trainers who were cruel to their Pokemon. It was wrong of me to assume the same. Good luck with your next battle and against Gardenia,"

Lucas was shocked by the apology. He sent back Beautifly and bowed his head towards the woman, "Thanks,"

The wall whirled again and a third passageway was revealed. Inside, the final Junior Trainer, the girl with the plaid skirt, waited for Lucas. As the mohawk-bearing teen stepped through the door, she put her hands on her hips and frowned, "Darn, this means you beat the others. Oh well, this means I get to beat you myself, Pin Cushion,"

"You see, it's this approach that prevented me from showing mercy on the other two of your friends back there. I was in a pretty good mood after the last battle," Lucas sneered, "But now you've gone and pissed me off. Now I'm not going to be Mr. Nice Guy. Have fun losing,"

"Go Cherubi!"

"Go Beautifly!"

"Cherubi use Magical Leaf," though Cherubi was a tiny Pokemon, Magical Leaf is an attack that can never miss. Though Beautifly rose high towards the ceiling, the attack hit her at full force. Beautifly replied with Silver Wind. The two exchanged blows over and over. Magical Leaf and Silver Wind. Magical Leaf and Silver Wind. Beautifly was becoming exhausted, but just when it looked like she only needed one more hit to take the grass-type out the girl commanded, "Cherubi, Synthesis!"

"You bitch! What a cheap move!" Lucas snarled. Almost instantly, the Pokemon that was about to be knocked out, healed to almost full strength. Lucas' bug-type was exhausted. With no other choice, Lucas called her back, "Guess this means I have to rely on my trump card. Go Hotrod!"

The boy's Charmander came to the battle in peak shape. Any resemblance of confidence in the Junior Trainer vanished. Even with Cherubi using Synthesis over and over again, in less than three turns, Lucas was once again victorious. The girl looked furious, but she didn't speak.

"Well, would you look at that, I beat all three of you. Guess this means I have the right to see Gardenia now, huh?" Lucas walked up to the girl, "And it's _Mr_. Pin Cushion to you, Maybelline,"

"Fine, you might be able to beat us, but we're still in training. It's a whole different game against Gardenia. Good luck, dude, because you're going to need it," with a forced smile, the final Trainer pressed the button on her platform and all the walls disappeared. The two other Junior Trainers became visible, and the entirety of the Gym was revealed. Straight ahead Lucas could see the Gym Leader, her back turned towards him as she worked on a small garden. The moving walls didn't disturb her as she focused on her work. She had copper red hair and a curvy body, as well as dark green cape Lucas knew he had seen before. Without thinking he began to run towards her, any animosity with the Junior Trainer now forgotten.

A twinge of shock and amazement went through Lucas' body as headed towards the Eterna City's leader. When he finally got to her, he gripped her shoulder to spin her around, hand touching the familiar green cape. Gardenia's mild surprise from the sudden handling transformed into equal shock and recognition. At the same time, the two trainers exclaimed, "It's you!"


	7. Chapter 7 The Haunted Mansion

Chapter Seven: The Haunted Mansion

After three fierce battles against the Junior Trainers of the Eterna City gym, Lucas had finally gotten to the Gym Leader, Gardenia. As he stood in front of her his first thought was not to challenge her. In fact, even after the bitter confrontations with the Trainers who had insulted him, battle was the last thing on Lucas's mind. The only thought he had now was that he knew her. Lucas didn't know Gardenia because he had ever seen pictures of her, in fact, the teen didn't know any of the Leaders in Sinnoh. He hadn't even heard the name of the Eterna City Leader until he read it on the sign in front of the building. He knew her because he recognized the green cape that she wore over her shoulders. And from the startled expression on her face, Gardenia had recognized him as well. Lucas, however, was the one to speak first, "It's you. You're the person I met in Eterna Forest. You showed me how to get out,"

"That's right. And you're the boy with the sick Eevee. It looks like everything is okay now, he seems pretty happy and healthy on your shoulder," Gardenia smiled warmly.

Lucas lowered his head, breaking eye contact with the Leader and clenching his fist, "If it weren't for you, Gizmo would have died. I found him abandoned by his Trainer. He's mine now, but if it weren't for you I wouldn't have even had the chance. I wouldn't have Gizmo, I wouldn't be a Trainer," Lucas met his eyes with hers again and stated earnestly, "For that you have my gratitude until the day I die. I'll never forget what you did. But you are the Gym Leader here, and I've come to challenge you for a badge. And I plan to win. Even though you helped me I can't take it easy on you, but I promise it'll be the best battle I can give you,"

The teen pulled a Pokeball off of his belt and waited for the battle to start. Gardenia's lip began to twitch, her face became completely red and tears formed in her eyes. She covered her face with her hands and turned away. The Trainer with the plaid skirt ran up to the two red-heads and snarled at Lucas, "Nice going, you creep! Not only did you thrash our Pokemon, now you've made Gardenia cry with your threats of beating her!"

"Megan! He has every right to try to defeat the Leader. And he isn't a bad person, just an unfashionable one," The trainer in the long dress chastised her teammate.

"It's not that," Gardenia managed to say between her bouts of racking sobbing, "It's that I can't battle you. I've-I've lost my Pokemon!" The Leader then stared bawling again.

"What?" All three of Gardenia's Junior Trainers gasped, "How?"

The grass-type Trainer tried to compose herself, wiping her eyes and nose and turned back to Lucas, who stood speechless in the middle of this strange scene, "My family has been in charge of protecting the Eterna Forest for generations. During the day I can survey it just fine, but at night I just can't,"

"Um, not to seem dumb but I don't see the connection," Lucas said sheepishly, nervously playing with the loops in his right ear.

"At night is when the Ghost Pokemon come out," Gardenia explained, "And, to tell you the truth, I'm terrified of them! I know Leaders are supposed to love all Pokemon and everything, but I can't get near a ghost-type without shrieking and wanting to run away. I know I can't do that. I know I have to at least tolerate ghost-types if I'm going to be the best Leader I can be. So that day you saw me in the forest, I had gone to the Old Chateau, an abandoned mansion in the middle of the forest. I tried so hard to not get scared, but a Ghastly popped up and terrified me. I ran away screaming. But as I was escaping, the belt with my Pokeballs fell off,"

"Gardenia, why didn't you tell any of us?" Melissa, the trainer that looked like a girl-scout asked.

"I was so embarrassed. I didn't want to tell anyone. I had hoped as strong as the three of you are I wouldn't have to. I thought you guys could keep any Trainers away until I could get up the courage to go back and get my poor Pokemon, but I just can't get the nerve to go back there," Gardenia admitted with a defeated slump. For a moment, all the Trainers in the Gym fell silent as they all thought about how to remedy the situation.

"I can get them for you," Lucas finally announced.

All the women of the Gym looked towards him. Gardenia blinked in surprise, "Are you sure?"

"You helped me save Gizmo. I figure saving your Pokemon is a good way to repay the debt," the teen explained before grinning, "Besides, there isn't a helluva lot that scares me,"

While the Junior Trainers all looked to each other, the Leader's eyes welled up with tears again. This time, she was smiling.

Lucas left the Gym and headed for the Pokemon Center to heal his team. While he thought he could survive against a Leader battle, he knew exploring required his Pokemon to be in peak condition. It was already dark as he headed towards the forest, ready to follow the directions to Old Chateau that Gardenia had given him before he left. This late at night, the Fisherman that normally peppered the pond outside Eterna City were gone, leaving the bridge and the small docks eerily empty. It had been several days now since Lucas last saw the forest, and his memories of the landscape blurry from the adrenaline-fueled dash to the Pokemon Center the day he met Gizmo. Even if he had remembered what the location looked like, he was fairly certain it wouldn't have mattered. The lack of light and long shadows gave a sinister look to the trees, making everything look unfamiliar and threatening, and the chittering and howling of the nocturnal Pokemon gave an eerie background noise to the small snaps and cracks made by Lucas' heavy boots.

What the boy said at the Gym was true, Lucas was not easily scared. Two stints of Juvenile Hall pretty much eliminated any fear of anything that wasn't truly deadly. Though he was not easily scared, the teen wasn't stupid either. The darkness was a perfect cover for an ambush by human or Pokemon, and being alert and cautious was a necessity. He could feel from the tenseness in Gizmo's grip on his shoulder that the Eevee felt the same suspicions. Finally Lucas found the fork in the road that lead to the mansion. He tried to make a mental note of where it was. Eterna Forest was very easy to get lost in, and it was much larger than just the small section he crossed in order to get to the city. As the teen walked down the path, the forest got darker. The trees grew thicker, blocking out the small amount of light made by the waning moon above him. The shadows turned part of the path pitch black, and the Trainer stumbled and tripped over the rocks and branches on the ground.

"This is ridiculous," Lucas grunted after faceplanting on the damp ground for a third time. He pulled himself up and yanked a ball off of his belt, "Go Hotrod!"

"Char, Char!" the small fire-type chirped happily. The flame on his tail brightened up the ground, finally giving the teen a chance to see what was in front of him. However, while the light made it easier to see, it also made the shadows even bigger. A chill ran down Lucas' spine, and his senses amplified by the pumping adrenaline coursing through his body. He was being watched. He could feel it. The teen glanced anxiously at each tree and shadow when suddenly two of the larger shadows moved.

"Uuuooouuu!" an unearthly groan came from the woods. The shadows morphed and shifted until they formed the shape of two humans, before becoming clear in Hotrod's light. As far as Lucas could tell they were a man and a woman, similarly dressed in garish purple outfits, covered with charms and amulets, and both wearing the same haunted expression on their faces, "The spirits are restless tonight,"

"Who the hell are you?" Lucas took a defensive posture, not sure what to make of these bizarre people.

"We are Psychics. Trainers of psychic and ghost-type Pokemon," They said together, doing nothing to diminish their unnerving behavior.

"So you want to challenge me?"

"No, there would be not much point in it," The man finally said individually of his partner, "We know the outcome of the battle anyway. Your loss would be most humiliating."

"Sure it would," Lucas said with a roll of his eyes. He relaxed his body, though Gizmo still seemed uneasy and alert.

"We came to give you a warning," The woman continued, "We know you will be going to the Old Chateau this night. Be most aware in there, if you must go at all. It is a place with a dark history of madness, and could destroy you if you're not careful,"

_No wonder Gardenia's scared of ghosts when you have nuts like this running around at night_. Lucas thought to himself, "What kind of dark history?"

"The Old Chateau was a laboratory in addition to a mansion. The owner was a scientist who dared to dabble in something he should have never touched. One night the entire mansion glowed like an unearthly beacon, and everyone inside vanished. Since then it has become infested with Ghost Pokemon, and occasionally those who dare to venture inside either go mad, or vanish entirely,"

"Um, well, thanks for the information. It was...informative. I hope you guys have a nice night," The teen edged away from the couple slowly, glancing back towards the path he intended to follow. The two Psychics stared at him strangely, "I'm going to walk away now."

Lucas walked quickly away from the creepy Trainers and shortly afterward found what he assumed was the Old Chateau. The building was indeed quite huge and in its heyday the young man assumed was a beautiful place. It was several stories tall surrounded by statues and intricate molding. Now the siding was cracked and falling off and all the windows were broken. And the entire building was at a slant that suggested it could collapse at any moment. The Trainer turned to Gizmo and Hotrod and commented, "As far as I can see the only thing dangerous about this place is that it looks like a small wind or decent sneeze is gonna knock the freaking thing down. The sooner we go in, the sooner we can find Gardenia's Pokemon, the sooner we can get our happy asses away from this deathtrap,"

His Pokemon nodded reluctantly in agreement, but would only move if Lucas took the lead. The door to the old building was unlocked, but difficult to open because the frame was no longer square. The teen was hesitant to put too much force on it, fearing his thoughts about the Chateau's structural integrity weren't blown out of proportion. With enough of a nudge the door eventually swung open, giving the teen his first glimpse inside. It was clear to him that no one had lived there for at least fifteen years, if not longer. The furniture was fairly modern, though most of it was knocked down and broken and coated with a thick layer of dust. On the bare wood floors he could see the footprints of people and Pokemon had come in exploring before him. In the center of the front room was a large statue of a Pokemon Lucas didn't recognize and several doors and a staircase were visible in the various directions.

Gardenia had not been very precise about where she lost her belt, only saying that she lost it sometime between being on the second floor and running out the front door. Lucas stepped forward and motioned for Hotrod to step ahead of him to illuminate more of the floor, so the teen could see all the way to the staircase. The belt was not there, meaning it had to be somewhere on the second floor. The teen walked towards the staircase when the front door slammed behind him. Lucas whirled around with his fists raised, ready for an attack. There was no one there. Satisfied that it was either the wind or a Pokemon who had caused the action, the young man headed up the stairs. He cautiously tested each one before putting his full weight on any of the steps, but despite the building's looks, the staircase felt sound. Each one creaked uncomfortably, and despite his rationalization, tiny threads of fear formed in Lucas' mind.

Despite Hotrod's light, the second floor still seemed darker than the first, like the darkness were an entity instead of just the absence of light. Though it was hard to tell, Lucas could see that there were at least a half dozen rooms on the second floor, with no idea how big the rooms actually were. For the sake of simplicity, Lucas started with the first door on the end of the hall. As he put his hand on the door, the tiny hairs on the back of his neck stood up. He could hear _laughing_. It wasn't the kind of laughing from a cheesy horror movie, it was worse. It was the kind of noise that so quiet you weren't sure if you actually heard it, and wondered if the noise was real or just in your head. The kind of noise the makes you question your sanity. The teen shook his head and turned the knob. He reminded himself things were only scary of it could cause him to die. Anything else was just wasted energy. The door swung open easily and silently, and like Lucas suspected, the room was vacant. The occupant had been gone for ages, leaving behind papers with scientific information the teen had no way of comprehending and a strange framed picture on the wall. At least Lucas thought it was a picture, it shined a bit and was small like a mirror. Curious, the young man approached it for a closer look. Upon closer inspection, the rookie Trainer was certain it wasn't a mirror. Though the actual figure was impossible for him to make out, the teen could recognize a pair of eyes he knew wasn't his. Despite this, Lucas continued to stare at the image, wondering what sort of lunatic would put something like it on the wall.

"Veeee..." Gizmo was growling now, his coat puffed up and his ears flat against his head. Hotrod was snarling at the picture as well. Suddenly the eyes on the image narrowed angrily. Lucas had enough.

"Let's go see what's behind door number two," Lucas said anxiously, his voice becoming higher pitched than he intended. The next room, thankfully, was no where near are terrifying as the room with the painting. This room contained only a bed, a dresser, but unfortunately, no belt. The third room down the line was empty as well and just as Lucas was leaving the fourth room more of the unnerving sounds and darkness surrounded him again. The teen spun around, trying to find the source of the event, seeing nothing that answered any questions. As the Trainer set his foot outside the door, and instinct told him to turn around once again. This time, he was face to face with a Gastly. The Gastly let out a shriek and drew its tongue against Gizmo's face. The Eevee just sat nonplussed, ghost-type moves having no effect on Normal Pokemon. Getting face to face with the Ghost Pokemon relieved Lucas immensely and had a short battle against it. Chingling's attack made short work of the Gastly and the teen added the creature to his collection.

Knowing the source of the strange noises and sights gave the mohawk-bearing young man confidence in further exploring the rest of the floor. In the fifth room all Lucas found was an old styled TV, the kind still with a picture tube like his grandfather had. In the final room the boy found his prize. Caught on a handle of a chest of drawers was Gardenia's Pokeball belt. Lucas tugged the garment free and double-checked to make sure all the Pokemon were accounted for. The Leader said she had three on her belt and all three were there.

The boy whistled absentmindedly as he walked back towards the staircase when he noticed something strange. The door to the fifth room was open and the television was now glowing brightly, the low sound of static coming from the device's speaker. Lucas froze. All his confidence and calm vanished in an instant and all sense of discerning rational from irrational fears gone. All the young man knew was that Gastly don't know electrical attacks, there was no way electricity was still flowing in the house and there was no way he turned the TV on himself. Paralyzed with fear all Lucas could do was squeak out, "Jesus Christ! I somehow got myself into goddamn Poltergeist!"


	8. Chapter 8 Lucas v Gardenia

Chapter 8: Lucas vs. Gardenia

Lucas felt the most terrified he had ever been since his first night in Juvenile Hall. The same uncertainty, the same paranoia, the same dread of waiting for the worst to happen. All these feelings rushed back to him as he stood on the second floor of the Old Chateau in Eterna Forest, staring at a glowing television in an abandoned house. The teen had no idea what to do. Running seemed like a valid option, except for the annoying problem of his legs refusing to obey his brain. He tried to command his body to do something besides soil himself when he noticed Gizmo was no longer on his shoulder. The normal-type Pokemon was approaching the television, sitting down a foot in front of it and cocking his head curiously. The terrified Trainer made a connection in his panic-stricken brain. In the other room Gizmo reacted viciously, as though the room with the painting was a real danger, now the Eevee showed no fear at all. This shard of logic relaxed his muscles and the sweat stopped leaking from his body. Still cautious, the teen joined his Pokemon in front of the TV and studied it carefully.

The Trainer knelt in front of the electronic and put his hands on the frame, trying to figure out what was causing it to run. He studied the glowing snow, looking for some sign for the mysterious happening. Suddenly an image flickered briefly, causing Lucas to fall back from surprise. The image flickered again, its silhouette becoming clearer and more defined, "Rrrro?"

Gliding through the solid glass appeared a strangely shaped red creature with large playful eyes and blue plasma surrounding its body. It first went to Gizmo, investigating the Eevee as the normal-type sniffed and examined the creature. It next floated around Hotrod, who was less outgoing around the being than Gizmo was. Seemingly bored, the creature next moved its short attention span to Lucas. The mysterious organism getting within inches of the human's face, moving up and down as it studied him. Whatever it was, it was smiling, and it didn't seem dangerous. Finally Lucas got the courage to speak again, "Are, are you some kind of Pokemon?"

"Ro! Ro! Rrrrotommmm!" The creature chirped excitedly spinning around and dancing in the air.

Lucas got back to his knees, all fear now completely gone, "What are you? And what were you doing inside of the TV?"

The mysterious Pokemon closed its eyes and looked like it was concentrating. A huge spark came off of its body and the snow on the television cleared. A man in a lab coat appeared on the screen, in the background were people running around frantically, wearing haz-mat suits, and as though to answer Lucas' question, he began speaking, "The experiments have been a complete success. With our experimentation, we have created a new form of Pokemon. One capable of changing not only its shape and appearance, but also its type. An electric-type Pokemon with ghost-like attributes, which we call 'Rotom'. While Rotom's creation was a complete success, the processes to create it are beyond our control. Dangerous levels of gamma and microwave radiation are proving this location too hazardous to stay at. We are evacuating now before the levels rise any more. It is unlikely we will be able to return to this location for many years, until it is no longer 'hot'. We are forced to leave Rotom behind. It is unaffected by the energy levels, but we are not sure how stable it can be outside the lab environment, and are concerned for its safety. It is a shame, as Rotom is a very friendly and gentle creature. We hope that Galactic Labs can return here as soon as possible,"

The footage faded back to snow and Rotom opened its eyes and began floating curiously around the room again. Lucas stood up and Gizmo returned to his shoulder, "That explains what this place has been abandoned, or why people think the scientists here just vanished—they evacuated. Poor little guy, he was probably lonely all these years. All these Gastly probably keep anyone away, and when that TV lights up they probably freaked out like I did," Lucas thought for a moment, "Hey little dude, do you want to come with me? I mean, if you survived all this time on your own I think you'll do okay outside of this house. I could be your Trainer. Show you the world outside this house,"

The Rotom's face lit up and it spun around even faster now. Before the teen could do anything, Rotom turned itself back into plasma and shot itself at Lucas' bag. A Pokeball popped on the ground, wobbled and clicked. The cheerful electric-type now had a Trainer.

"Welcome to the team, Sparky,"

Gardenia was beginning to get worried. It was already in the middle of the afternoon of the next day, and the Trainer who had volunteered to rescue her Pokemon still hadn't returned. Her Junior Trainers hung around the gym, lazily grooming their hair and nails, or just staring blankly waiting for something to happen. The Leader sat on her gardening bench, trying to judge the situation. Did Lucas get lost? Or maybe he gave up on helping her and moved on to somewhere else. No, she doubted that thought, Lucas seemed too earnest and genuine about his promise to just flake out. What if he did get to the mansion and something happened? What if there weren't just Pokemon in the Old Chateau. That last thought especially unnerved her, what if she sent a kind-hearted Trainer to his doom all because she was a coward? She didn't deserve to call herself a Gym Leader...

"Sorry I took so long!" the doors suddenly slammed open, and Lucas walked through the entrance, he was smiling and looked uninjured, his Eevee marching happily in front of him. Gardenia let out a sigh of relief to see he was okay. But her eyes began to well up again when she spotted a belt with Pokeballs slung over his shoulder, "I had to take care of a few things with my own Pokemon before coming here," He walked over to the Grass Leader and handed the belt to her, "I got them checked out at the Pokemon Center as well, just to make sure. They are perfectly fine, a little scared, but otherwise they're okay,"

The Leader immediately grabbed the belt and summoned all her Pokemon. Seeing their smiling faces she dropped to her knees and wrapped her arms around them, totally unable to stop her sobbing, "Oh Turtwig, Cherim, Roserade, I am so, so sorry. Your Trainer is a wimp who shrieks at the first sign of a ghost. I promise no matter how scared I get I will never leave you again. I can only hope all of you forgive me." Her grass-types clung closer, showing she was more than forgiven. Still clinging to her team, she cleared her eyes and looked up to her team's rescuer, "Lucas, I could never thank you enough for what you've done. Just for this I'm going to give you a Forest Badge,"

Lucas shook his head, "No. I told you I got your Pokemon because I tried to return the favor for saving Gizmo. I don't want a handout. If you don't mind, I want to earn my badge in battle,"

"I'll respect your wishes," Gardenia got up and brushed the dust off of her knees. Her demeanor seemed to change. She strode up to the podium in the back of the Gym and faced Lucas formally, "I am Gardenia, Leader of the Eterna City Gym. I am a master of grass-type Pokemon, a versatile type capable of crippling status effects and the ability to self-heal. Trainer, to earn League recognition and the ability to advance closer towards the Elite Four, you must beat me in battle!"

"Challenge accepted!" Lucas announced. And with this simple exchange, the battle began, "Go Franky!"

"I choose you! Cherim!"

The strange, closed-petal Pokemon came running forward as the Magikarp appeared before it. Like the many Trainers before her, Gardenia blinked in confusion over Lucas' choice. The teen was obviously a kind kid, but maybe he wasn't that good of a Trainer. Before the Leader could call out an attack Lucas made his move, "Franky Return! Go Beautifly!"

"Ah, that's more like it!" Gardenia smiled, "Cherubi use Sunny Day!"

"Beautifly! Silverwind!" The Gym suddenly got very bright, and much much hotter. The mohawk-bearing teen, even with his sleeveless apparel, could feel the back of his neck get sweaty. Cherim's form changed, and its petals were now open, revealing a happy looking Pokemon bouncing with energy. Despite this, Beautifly's attack hit directly, but strangely, the attack's damage seemed relatively low.

"Use Solarbeam!" The Leader announced. Lucas knew he had a little time, this attack required two turns before it would hit. However, much to his shock, Cherim launched its attack immediately, knocking Beautifly out with one hit.

"Oh, I forgot, Sunny Day is in effect. That means that thing can use Solar Beam without having to charge up first. Sorry Beautifly, your Trainer is a moron," Lucas sighed sadly as he sent his twitching bug back to her ball. He pulled another ball off of his belt, "No more games. Gym Leaders are way stronger than any runts with a Bidoof. Go Hotrod!"

"Char! Charmander!" The fire-type was ready for battle, looking determinedly at its opponent. Sunny Day had a secondary effect, one Lucas planned to take full advantage of. In the sunlight, fire attacks were amplified. Something that Gardenia was well away of, judging from the twitch in her lip she tried to hide. A blast off of Ember attacks and Solar Beams bounced back and forth for two turns, before finally Lucas came out the victor, Cherim was charred.

"Now you, Turtwig! Don't get cocky, Lucas, Leaders can only become Leaders after years of disciplined training and certification," Gardenia warned, "Grass-knot!"

The ground shook as the AstroTurf split and a large vine appeared under Hotrod. Before Lucas could warn his Pokemon, the Charmander was knocked off of its feet, inflicting heavy damage.

"Ember!" the Trainer called out. The other Pokemon's Sunny Day move was still in effect, giving fire more of an edge.

"Leechseed!"

"Ember!"

"Grass Knot!"

"Ember!"

The second round was incredibly intense. Gardenia's powerful Turtwig held on as Hotrod took a beating. Lucas considered calling his Pokemon back, but Hotrod looked too determined to want to back down. After the exchange of massive blows and Sunny Day over, Turtwig was finally knocked out, but the Charmander was in rough shape. There would be no way for it to survive against the Leader's final Pokemon.

"Go Roserade!" Roserade, the final evolved form of Budew and Roselia. It was a Poison/Grass mix, but far more powerful than its previous versions. And being this was a Leader's Pokemon, Lucas had no doubts this Roserade was going to be a powerhouse. As far as he was concerned, he only had once choice against it.

"Go Sparky!" Lucas threw out the Pokeball and out appeared his new Rotom. After catching it in the Chateau last night, he looked up its data. It had a good mix of Ghost and Electric attacks, and had some abilities that would give it an advantage against the Leader's final Pokemon. As the Pokemon entered the field, it spun around and totally ignored the battle. It looked around the Gym, examining the lights and the fake grass carpeting, brought its attention to the Trainers and to Gizmo, while Roserade waited for its Trainer's direction. Lucas felt embarrassed by his Pokemon's behavior, and snapped his fingers to get its attention, "Sparky, look alive! Use Astonish,"

The Rotom heard the command and leisurely obeyed. It attacked its opponent like commanded and then returned its interest to its surroundings and the Gym Leader. Lucas covered his face with his hand in shame. He didn't notice that Gardenia's eyes were wide in terror as Sparky got up to inches from her face.

"Gardenia, I'm sorry, Sparky's new, and I think he's a little too high in level for me to control him entirely," Lucas was still feeling sheepish, and not paying attention to the Leader's behavior or the fact she didn't call out an attack.

"G-g-ghost!" the Trainer stammered, frozen in fear. Out of desperation she called out an attack, "Roserade! Grass Knot!"

"Rose?" the Pokemon looked unsure of the command, but obeyed its Trainer none-the-less. The ground split open again and a vine came hurtling out of the ground. Gardenia fell to the ground, but the Rotom was unaffected. Its Levitate ability prevented ground-based moves from touching it.

"Sparky, use Astonish again!" The Rotom turned its attention away from the terrified Leader and did as it was told. As soon as its attack was finished, it went back to bothering Gardenia.

Rather than standing in fear, Gardenia bolted and shrieked, "Grass Knot! Grass Knot! Grass Knot!"

"Sparky, get your head in the game and leave Gardenia alone!" Lucas cried after his unruly creature, horrified by its eclectic behavior. Once again the attack did nothing to the Rotom but caused the Leader to crash onto her face. And so would happen the rest of the battle. Lucas would give a command that Sparky followed without rebellion, but then as soon as it finished would harass the grass-type Trainer once again. Gardenia would respond with a careless attack that would do nothing to damage Sparky. This was not the strategy Lucas had planned, but it was working.

"Roserade keep that thing away from meeeee!" poor Gardenia squealed, but the battle was over. Rotom 's attacks had finally worn the Pokemon out, the battle, and the Gym match were over.

"Sparky, you did a great job pal, I think it's time you came back," Lucas groaned. He walked over to the trembling Leader, "Listen, Gardenia, I really, really didn't want to win like this,"

Realizing that the Pokemon was gone and she had lost the battle, it was the Leader's turn to be embarrassed. She put her hands in front of her face, groaned and fell to her knees again, "I can't believe I lost it like that," After a moment she got up and faced Lucas. Her face was bright pink, but she was smiling, "Lucas, you won fair and square, Sparky did listen to you, and it's my own fault I freaked out again. I really do need to get over this fear of mine. First I lose my Pokemon, and now I've lost the match. This is getting to be a bad habit," Gardenia reached into her cape and pulled out a thick wad of bills, a shiny pin and an object that looked like a computer disk, "However, since you have won, I certify you as a winner of the Forest badge. Sparky will probably start listening to you after getting it, and on behalf of myself I present you with the Technical Machine that teaches you the move Grass Knot. It's a powerful move, especially on heavy Pokemon like rock-types—assuming you use it right, unlike what I did,"

Lucas took what he was given and examined the badge closest. After a moment he closed his hand around the object and shot his fist into the air, "One down, seven to go! I've won my first badge!"

"Good luck on your journey Lucas, I hope we cross paths in the future, and I hope by that time we are both stronger," Gardenia bowed before the Trainer and smiled. Except for the plaid skirt Trainer, Megan, the Junior Trainers were smiling at him. With a final grin and appreciative nod, Lucas left the Gym for the next part of his adventure.

As he left the building to head for the Pokemon Center, he noticed the Pokeball holding Hotrod was glowing. Summoning the Charmander out, he noticed he was glowing as well. The Pokemon grew brighter and brighter, and his form changed and got bigger. When the glowing stopped his Charmander evolved into a Charmeleon. The transformed Pokemon breathed a celebratory flame into the sky and ran to Lucas' side to nuzzle him. Scratching his new Pokemon's head, Lucas reexamined his badge. Today was a good day.


	9. Chapter 9 The Warm Welcome

Chapter Nine: The Warm Welcome.

"So you got yourself a Forest badge," Grant smiled as he examined the pin Lucas presented before him.

"Yup! I managed to beat all of Gardenia's Pokemon, even if the final round was sort of cheating" the teen Trainer explained as he drank the coffee Grant had given him. After winning his badge and going to the Pokemon Center, Lucas stopped by Professor Oak's house to show him his success as well as show him the Pokemon he had captured. Though he still didn't have very many, the professor was still interested to see the young man's collection, especially his new Rotom. Apparently the electric/ghost was an extremely rare specimen, and Sparky may have been the original prototype. After meeting with the professor, the teen's next stop was Grant, the owner and president of the Underground Explorer's Club, the second friend Lucas made in Eterna City. Now he was sitting with the kind old man and enjoying a hot meal he had been provided.

"Do you have any plans on your next stop?" Grant asked as he handed the badge back to its owner.

"I was thinking most likely Oreburgh City," Lucas said between big bites of stew, his Pokemon were also enjoying their meals on the ground around him.

"Oreburgh City is a fine place, with a great Gym run by one of the most wonderful Leaders you will ever meet. Smart as a whip and an upstanding young man," Grant said proudly.

"Sounds like you know him personally," Lucas smirked, "Only thing I'm not looking forward to is the long-ass trip I'm going to have to take to get there. I'm going to have to cut back through the forest, go through Floroma Town, again, Jubilife City, again and head through the tunnel just to get to the city. It's going to take me two days at least!"

"Not if you have a bicycle. South of here is a Cycling Road, mostly downhill as well. Strong young fella like you-should only be a four-hour ride, maybe only a little more if you get stopped by Trainers," the old man explained, "And if you need a bike, I can get the Bicycle Shop owner to lend you one, he's a member of the club,"

"Actually, I have a bike, it's one of the few things I do have after getting kicked out of my parents' house. Probably best not to go at night though, since I'm already tired from spending last night in that old mansion and then going against the Leader. My best bet is to head out first thing in the morning. Thanks for dinner Grant, I know I'll stop by again,"

Lucas spent the night in the Pokemon Center, and was up bright and early the next morning, his body slowly getting adjusted to waking up early. He restocked his provisions and bid farewell to the city. He considered stopping by his brother's home to let him know how he was doing, but decided against it. He was still not very thrilled about his brother, and suspected that John would somehow turn his victory against the Gym Leader into some sort of insult. He pulled his folded bicycle out of his duffel bag and got ready for his ride. His bike was red and black, his two favorite colors, with flame and skull decorations. With it he'd annoy and harass the citizens of Cherrygrove, another memory of his old life that he no longer looked upon with satisfied dark humor. Now he just felt foolish about it. He lifted Gizmo onto the handlebars. Like himself, the definition of this bike would change.

Like Grant had told him, the bicycle path was just south of the city, and was a very easy ride. He was stopped a few times by some Trainers who wanted to battle, and he was given the chance to send Franky out again a few more times, to the humor of his opponents. He won each time, every battle getting slightly easier as both he and his Pokemon got stronger. By around noon, he could start to see the outlines of the buildings or Oreburgh City. However, as he peddled towards the city, he failed to notice the series of fliers and signs, posted along the light-posted and bulletin boards that lined the road.

Like Eterna City, Oreburgh was situated within rocky hills and stony formations, just in the shadow of the massive peak of Mr. Coronet. Lucas could see how so many tunnels and caverns could rest underneath both cities, and committed himself to exploring some of them with his gift from Grant before leaving for the next Gym. If it was true that there were fossils in the ground, he most certainly wanted one. Within another hour, the outlines of the city had became clearly defined. He jumped a final ledge with his bike and had arrived in the town's outskirts.

He and his Pokemon were still in good shape, so instead of immediately heading into town, Lucas decided to explore the grass first. In a short amount of time he had caught a Machop and a Ponyta. Satisfied with his captures, the boy started exploring the city.

Using his Pokevice, Lucas found the locations of the Pokemon Center and the city's Gym, as well as learning that the town was home to coal mine and more to the teen's interest, a museum which promised to have lots of Pokemon fossils. The boy made a mental list of the things he'd like to do in town before leaving, slipped the device back into his pocket and headed towards the Pokemon Center. As he turned a corner at a block, Gizmo started nudging his neck and chirping. The teen looked towards where his Pokemon was guiding him and saw a little boy sitting on the steps of an apartment building waving to him.

"Hi! Excuse me! Are you a Pokemon Trainer?" he called out.

"As a matter of fact, I am," Lucas smiled proudly. He didn't think he would ever tire of reveling in that fact. Even Gizmo seemed to pose a bit when Lucas declared himself. The young man walked towards the building as to not have to keep shouting back and forth with the child.

"Do you happen to have a Machop?" the little boy asked eagerly.

"Yeah, why?"

"Would you be willing to trade it for my Abra?"

Lucas raised an eyebrow and gestured back the way he came, "There are _loads_ of Machop right outside of town, why don't you go out and catch one yourself?"

"I can't," the boy explained sadly, "I'm kind of weak, I get sick a lot and don't get to leave my house much. Even on a good day these steps are as far as I go. I'd love to get one myself, but my parents wouldn't let me. I really want a Machop though. They're strong and they're tough and they're everything I'm not. If I had one, I wouldn't feel like I'm such a wimp. So, please?"

The little boy's pleading touched Lucas, "Sure, okay, I'll trade you my Machop. Just give me some time to get to the Pokemon Center and get it, okay?"

The little boy smiled widely, "Thank you,"

Lucas did as he promised and went to the Pokemon Center to heal up his team and get his new Machop from his PC. Within twenty minutes returned to the child and traded him for his Abra. The boy thanked him gratefully and asked him to make sure his Abra would be okay. And after reassuring the kid his Abra was in the best of hands, the teen headed for the Gym.

It felt good to be the good guy for a change.

As Lucas drank in the warm, fuzzy feelings of his good deed, he immediately became crestfallen when he arrived at the Gym. In addition to the signs that declared the Leader, a man named Roark who apparently raised rock-types, and winners of the Gym badge, including his brother and the mysterious Dawn and other Lucas, there was a third sign that greatly disappointed the teen: a sign declaring hours of operation.

_Gym hours: Monday-Friday, 4pm-9pm, Saturday, 10am-5pm, Sunday 11am-4pm._

Today was Thursday, and it was only three in the afternoon, Lucas would have to wait another hour before being able to challenge the Gym Leader. Annoyed, Lucas pulled out his Pokevice again to try to figure out how best to kill the time before the Gym would reopen. Stuffing it back into his pocket, the teen decided to locate the Pokemart. Before he was even one-hundred yards from the Gym, he was suddenly tackled to the ground.

"Freeze! You're under arrest!" A massive male police officer was on top of the teen's back, yanking his arms back and snapping cold metal handcuffs onto his wrists. The teen was slightly winded from the unexpected body-check, but could see three more officers surrounding him, including one holding a squirming Gizmo.

The actions were so out of left-field, so unexpected, that only one thought could form in Lucas' dazed mind, _You have got to be f*&%ing kidding me._

Lucas hated handcuffs. They were probably the thing Lucas hated about being arrested. Though this had happened to him many times, the metal shackles were always the worst part. It wasn't because the police would always do them too tight and his hands would fall asleep, and then ache for days—though he did hate that. And it wasn't because it was a physical symbol of him screwing up and getting caught for it, yet again—though that reminder was always humiliating. No, the part Lucas hated most about handcuffs were how defenseless they made him feel. With his hands restrained he couldn't fight back, protect himself. They made him feel vulnerable, the feeling he hated most in the world. He was very vulnerable right now, sitting alone in the dimly lit interrogation room, his hands cuffed behind his back to the uncomfortable metal chair, his things spread out on the table for examination and his Pokemon taken away from him to some unknown location. If he weren't so pissed, he'd find the situation hilarious. Despite the fact that started turning his life around, started being polite to people, started doing kind acts, for the first time in his life in the longest time he had done nothing wrong, he still managed to get arrested.

The door to the interrogation room opened and a severe looking lady cop marched in and faced the teen. Her tough looks didn't impress Lucas, he had seen the act too many times before, and many times better done, "So why the hell did you dumbass pigs arrest me? I didn't do anything!"

"That's what they all say," the cop snapped, her eyes narrowed over the teen's foul-mouth and bad attitude.

Lucas rolled his eyes, "So what the hell are the charges anyway?"

"Pokemon Larsony." She stated as she crossed her arms.

"WHAT?" Of all the possible crimes the young man would ever thought to be charged with, this was not one he believed would ever be possible, "Jesus Christ, this has to be some kind of joke. You think I've stolen Pokemon?"

"For the last week we've had reports that suspicious-looking strangers have been robbing people of their Pokemon. A concerned citizen reported you skulking around our city, and you, young man are one of the most suspicious looking people I've seen in a while. What are those, gang tattoos?"

"You obviously don't get out much. And no, these are not gang tattoos," Lucas decided against mentioning he was in a gang, that would not help him, "Not to mention there is no way this thief could have been me because _I've only been in this town less than two goddamn hours!_"

"You were found in the possession of Kazza. I know that Abra personally because he belongs to a neighbor boy of mine,"

"I traded him for it! Ask him yourself!"

"Right now we're looking into whether or not the Pokemon you had on you were reported stolen, as well as the Pokevice and Pokedex,"

The teen tried very, very hard to change his approach. He knew his temper was not going to get things better, "Listen, _officer_, I know I don't exactly look like Mr. Upstanding-Young-Man, but I am a legit Trainer, I have a license and everything. If you just look in the pocket over my chest on my left side you'll find my card. And if you call Professor Oak he'll let you know I'm for real,"

"Your things have been gone through thoroughly, and no identification was found on your person," The officer declared. Lucas' eyes widened in horror, before dropping his head in defeat. That vest pocket was the same one he kept his Pokevice in. When he pulled the device out he must have unintentionally grabbed the card as well and dropped the license in front of the Gym, "And we're not about to bother the great Professor Oak because of some delinquent kid. It seems you're underage, so at the moment we're trying to find a family member to get in contact with and let them know of the charges,"

_Oh my god, no!_ Lucas felt like he was going to be sick, and the color drained from his face. If the police got in contact with John it would be all over. Not only would his journey come to an end, even if the charges were dropped, he would just know that John would duct-tape him like a mummy, hang him from a chain and use him as a punching bag. Assuming his parents weren't the first to find out, they would most likely hire a hitman.

Just as Lucas felt all hope was lost, the door to the interrogation room opened and a man in his early twenties stepped in. He had familiar dark colored hair, thick glasses and was wearing a safety helmet that the teen knew he had seen before somewhere. Lucas could not tear his eyes off of him, "Sorry to disturb you officer, but you asked me to talk to you about security in town, and the others said you would be here,"

"It's no problem, Roark, I was just interrogating this Pokemon thief, I should be done soon, though this kid refuses to confess," the officer explained to the Leader. The rock Trainer nodded and smiled and turned back towards the door.

"Hey wait!" Lucas suddenly remembered where he had seen this person before. Now he could not let Roark go. He knew that this person may be the way to save himself, "You're Grant's grandson!"

The man turned to the teen and tilted his head curiously, "You know my grandfather?"


	10. Chapter 10 Lucas v Roark

Chapter 10: Lucas v. Roark

"You know my grandfather? How?" Roark, the Gym Leader of Oreburgh City had been summoned to the police station to discuss the recent outbreak of Pokemon thefts in the area. Now he stood in the interrogation room, in front of a teen boy handcuffed to a chair accused of being one of the thieves he was partially responsible to help stop. This boy claimed he actually knew one of his relatives. _Could he be telling the truth?_

Lucas wasn't lying, he _did _know Roark's grandfather. On the night the young man had started his journey, only a few days prior, he had stayed at the home of the kindly old man, Grant, President and Founder of the Underground Explorer's Club. In the back room where Lucas had slept there was a photo of Grant, another man and a little boy with glasses and a safety helmet, this same boy, now a man, standing before the incarcerated Trainer. It suddenly made sense why Grant spoke so fondly of the Gym Leader of Oreburgh City, "Grant is the President of the Underground Explorer's Club, I stayed with him a few nights ago. I joined the club because I like fossils and ancient Pokemon. I even have tattoos of some on my right arm,"

"Boy, you'll say anything, won't you? Claiming you know the Gym Leader's grandfather," the lady cop who had been interrogating Lucas scoffed.

Roark went to the table where the teen's things had been laid out and examined them. Amongst the dirty laundry, half-empty packages of junk food, old papers and a ratty looking stuffed Snorlax was a familiar yellow toolbox the Leader knew all too well: an explorer kit.

"Release him."

The cop looked at him with her mouth gaping in shock, "What?"

"This guy is telling the truth. He does know my grandfather, he's not the thief," Roark stated frankly.

"Even if he does know your grandfather that doesn't automatically mean he's not the thief," the cop snapped. She refused to believe the pierced, tattooed, foul-mouthed kid chained to her chair was innocent of anything.

"My grandfather has the best judgment of anyone I know. He wouldn't give an explorer kit to anyone who wouldn't deserve one. And most certainly wouldn't let a criminal stay at his house. This guy is innocent," Roark was certain, he would not be dissuaded from this fact.

The cop opened her mouth to argue when there was another knock on the interrogation room's door. Another officer came into the room with Gizmo wriggling in his arms and Lucas' belt over his shoulder. He saluted his superior, "We ran checks on all of this boy's Pokemon and they are all legally registered to him with no similar Pokemon reported stolen. We also interviewed the little boy and he did, in fact, trade his Abra for a Machop. And when we talked to the nurse from the Pokemon Center, she confirmed that this Trainer only came to this town today. He's not the thief, Ma'am,"

The lady cop gritted her teeth, "I can't believe this kid isn't guilty of _something_,"

"Release him. You arrested an innocent Trainer and took away his Pokemon. I know we're all worried and you were doing your job, but you've gone too far, Officer. So free him now," Roark repeated. For a moment she looked like she would refuse, but in matters of Pokemon, a League representative like a a Leader had authority over her. The cop grumbled something no one could hear, pulled the handcuff keys from her belt and walked behind Lucas to start undoing the locks.

The Eevee squirmed out of the other cop's grip and bounded over to Lucas, hopping on his lap and licking his face between frantic, happy chirps, "I missed you, too, buddy,"

His hands now free he wrapped his arms around the loyal Pokemon and stood up to face Roark. The Leader gave an apologetic bow, "On behalf of the people of Oreburgh City, I'm sorry for the inconvenience and hardship you suffered—er..."

"Lucas." The Trainer started repacking his things and putting his Pokeball belt back around his waist, "Meh, I've gone through worse. Better to be falsely arrested and moonwalk my way out of here then actually do something and be stuck in here,"

Despite Lucas' insistence that he was fine and not upset, Roark decided to give Lucas a proper tour of the town as an apology. At first the younger boy resisted the fussing, but changed his tune when one of their stops was the museum that the teen had wanted to see. Not only did Roark give him a tour, he took him behind the scenes to meet the scientists who worked there.

"Because of the coal mine we end up finding lots of fossils. Our museum is one of the best in any of the regions. We even end up sending extra samples to other museums," Roark explained as they walked through the back storage rooms. Lucas' eyes danced as he gazed at the complete skeletons. Many were of Pokemon he wasn't familiar with, but it didn't take away the wonder he had as he stared at them. The museum in Pewter City was always his favorite place in the world, but compared to there, this place was heaven. Roark continued, "In fact, it was some of our samples that scientists on Cinnabar Island used to perfect the cloning process used to revive Pokemon fossils,"

That last piece of information shocked Lucas out of his daze, "Revive Pokemon fossils?"

"Oh yeah, if you find any fossils, just take them here and they can revive the Pokemon inside of them. It's become a really easy process now," If Lucas didn't have a Gym match coming up, he would have run out the door to the nearest pile of dirt and start digging. He was definitely going to start exploring before leaving the area. "We can go to the Gym now if you're ready. The police told me that's where they found you, I assume that you were here to challenge me,"

"Yeah, I was," Lucas nodded as they started walking out of the museum and back towards the Pokemon Gym, "Why was the Gym closed anyway? I've never heard of a Gym with operating hours before,"

Roark put a hand in his hair and shook it vigorously. Flecks of fine black powder fell off of his follicles, revealing his real hair color, a dark burgundy, "I work almost every day in the coal mine. The mine is the lifeblood of the town, almost everybody works there. We do our best to make sure that we don't harm the land as we excavate, because without it no one would have any jobs. The Gym is very important, but to me, the town matters more,"

As they returned to front of the Gym, Roark pulled out a set of keys and unlocked the building. Lucas looked around and discovered where he had dropped his Trainer ID. It was a great sense of relief to have it back, and the teen chastised himself for losing such a precious item in the first place. The gym itself seemed to reflect its Leader: it was open, clear and to the point. No tricks, no puzzles, not even any Junior Trainers. The walls and floors were lined with stones and rocks, confirming that this was in fact a rock-type Gym. Roark marched to the podium at the very back of the Gym, giving a wide swathe of space between Lucas and himself.

Lucas' team was made up of Gizmo, Hotrod, Sparky, Franky, Chingling and Beautifly. Having been unfamiliar with the Leader's Pokemon before coming to the town, he neglected switching up his team at the Pokemon Center. None had any real advantage against rock-types, but he wasn't concerned. Their levels would be much higher than Roark's after having beaten Gardenia, and they still knew some moves that the Rock Pokemon simply would be unable to stop.

"I am Roark, Gym Leader of the Oreburgh City. I am a wielder of rock-types, strong Pokemon with punishing attack strength and heavy defenses. They might not have the fanciest of attacks, but they aren't easy to push around. If you want my Coal Badge, you must defeat me," Roark declared. He pulled a Pokeball off of her belt and the battle began, "Go Geodude!"

"Go Hotrod!" Lucas' Charmeleon came snarling into battle. Though outside of a fight Hotrod stayed a loving, happy Pokemon, since his evolution his serious nature in battle intensified, making his a vicious fighter, "Use Dragon Rage!"

"Tackle!"

Hotrod's attack landed first. A dragon-type move, Dragon Rage had one immense benefit against the rock-type: because the attack was unaffected by type advantages or disadvantages, it always did the same amount of massive damage. Though the Geodude's Tackle was quite strong, after a second Dragon Rage it was down for the count, while Hotrod was still ready for more.

Roark was unfazed, "Go Onix!"

Lucas knew he had to be careful now, the Onix was at a higher level than the Geodude, much faster and most likely knew stronger attacks. He would be cautious, but not change his strategy. Hotrod kept using Dragon Rage, though Hotrod did take a pounding from one of Onix's Rock Throw attacks. But even then after several moves the Leader's Onix was also defeated.

Roark was smiling now. Not a smile of accepted defeat, but rather of determination, and great amusement, "I have to admit, Lucas, I didn't know what to think of you when our battle began. You come off as something of an odd person: you look like someone who could be a bad person with the way you dress and your somewhat rude attitude. But I knew you had to be a good person if you liked fossils and my grandfather trusted you. Now I can see exactly what kind of guy you are by the way you raised your Pokemon. You've knocked me down to my final Pokemon. But I'm afraid this battle isn't one you can win. Go Cranidos!"

Lucas was in awe of the Leader's final Pokemon. It was a small, dinosaur-like creature with a large head. It looked downright...prehistoric, "It that..?"

Roark confident smile turned into a grin of pride and pleasure, "Yup, you're right, this is a Pokemon I revived from a fossil,"

The teen Trainer knew he would definitely want a Pokemon like that, more sure than ever he would go hunting for fossils after winning his badge. Despite Roark's warning, the young man was confident of his imminent victory. The Leader was down to his last Pokemon, and Lucas still had a full team, "Hotrod, Dragon Rage!"

"Cranidos, Headbutt!" Lucas wasn't even sure he saw what happened. One minute his Charmeleon was on his way to attack his opponent, the next, the fire-type was flat on its back completely unconscious. The teen was sure Cranidos must have attacked. This Pokemon was fast. Scary fast.

"Chingling! Confusion!" the teen summoned his Pokemon and Roark immediately countered. Another declaration of Headbutt, another lightning fast move, and another one of Lucas' Pokemon knocked out. The pierced young man's cockiness faded. This Cranidos may be Roark's last Pokemon but it had insanely speed. And it was insanely strong. The boy quickly formulated a new plan. If he could slow it down, he would have a chance to knock the rock-type out, "Beautifly, Stun Spore!"

"Headbutt!" Once again, Lucas' Pokemon was down in one hit, without making a chance to make a move.

Lucas adjusted to the situation. Cranidos kept using Headbutt, Headbutt, as strong as it was, was a normal-type move. Those types of moves were useless against ghost-types, "Sparky! Show this thing who's boss! Use Astonish!"

The Rotom eagerly escaped its Pokeball, but clearly had not gotten over its bad habit of not paying attention to the battle it was participating in. Before attacking it examined its surroundings, playfully pushing a pebble around the ground with one of its plasma tendrils. The Trainer was slowly getting used to his quirky Pokemon, and snapped his fingers to get its attention. Sparky glided towards the Cranidos when Roark declared his own attack, "Rock Slide!"

Another plan laid to waste. Once again the Cranidos attacked first, and Sparky's electric-type side was at its mercy. A shower of stones fell from the stone-lined ceiling and Sparky was knocked out. Lucas was beginning to panic slightly. He had gone from a full team to only two Pokemon left. He grabbed the Pokeball from his necklace and summoned his most agile Pokemon, "Gizmo! Tackle!"

"Headbutt!" Lucas finally caught a break. For once, the Cranidos missed and the small normal-type's attack collided. Unfortunately, though he finally landed a hit, Gizmo did precious little damage. Roark commanded his Pokemon again, this time not missing. And though Gizmo was significantly higher in level than Roark's Pokemon, he too was out with one hit.

The Trainer ran to his Pokemon's aid. It was the first time he had ever seen his Eevee knocked out, and the limp form he took frightfully reminded Lucas of when Gizmo had almost died in his arms in Eterna Forest. He picked his creature up and cradled it gently, "Are you okay, buddy?" Though unconscious, his breathing and heart rate were normal. A great weight was lifted off of his chest, but he had more pressing concerns. Now both he and the Gym Leader were down to their final Pokemon. This whole battle all rested on his last Pokemon's shoulders. Though Lucas was concerned so much of his team was taken down so quickly, he had full confidence in the abilities of his Pokemon, "Go Franky!"

Lucas' Magikarp landed on the rough stone of the Gym and flopped desperately. Like all the other Trainers who had faced this Pokemon before him, Roark gave a confused raise of his eyebrow to his opponent's choice, "This is your final Pokemon, Lucas? Are you sure you don't want to just forfeit? I mean, I know you're desperate for your badge, but maybe you should come back when you have some better Pokemon. After all, half of battle is strategy and logic, not just brute strength and luck,"

Lucas shook his head vehemently, "I know exactly what I'm doing and I'm not changing my mind. I have full confidence in Franky. He's going to win this battle for me. He may not seem like much, but he hasn't let me down yet. He'll fight for me because he loves me, and knows how much I love him,"

"All right, if you insist," Roark shrugged and returned to his determined focus, "Cranidos, this is almost over. One more Headbutt!"

"Tackle!" Much to the Leader's surprise, the Magikarp hoisted himself up and collided with Cranidos before the Pokemon could attack. Once again, the damage was low, but the Fish Pokemon's speed seemed to have come out of nowhere. The Cranidos' attack did hit its mark as well, but somehow Franky was able to hang on, it wasn't knocked out. Instead, it began flopping even more frantically than before.

And its body started to glow.

Lucas was now wearing a triumphant smile and was laughing, "I'd think as a Gym Leader you'd be the last person to underestimate a Magikarp. But like everyone else you looked at me like I was crazy for bringing it into battle. Normally I summon Franky first, and then immediately summon him back. I've done that for almost every battle I've fought. He'd get experience and never have to get hurt. And I've been slowly leveling him up for days. But this time I saved him for last, and that was for a reason. Everyone underestimates Magikarp. They think they are weak, that they are stupid, that they are useless and worthless, just like people used to think of me. But Magikarp are awesome. Not only are tougher than they look, they're really fast..." Franky's body glowed brighter and brighter and grew until its body was massive and taking up large parts of the Gym, "...and they evolve into Gyrados."

Roark's eyes widened involuntarily as the newly formed Gyrados slithered around the Gym floor. The stories of this Pokemon's power and temperament were legendary, and it was only natural to be terrified of it. The Leader did his best to regain his composure and croaked out an attack, "Headbutt,"

"Franky! Bite!" Lucas commanded. The sea-monster-like Pokemon reacted immediately to his owner's command and picked up the Cranidos and clamped his teeth together before the other Pokemon could make a move. The attack was so powerful that the Pokemon that had knocked out most of Lucas' team was out within a few seconds. Franky dropped the rock-type unceremoniously on the ground. The battle was over. Lucas was victorious.

Roark recovered from his astonishment and picked up his defeated Pokemon, "Good job, Cranidos, I'm proud of you,"

"Your Pokemon is really amazing. I hope I find a Cranidos half as awesome as yours is," Lucas added genuinely.

"Lucas, as you have defeated me, I recognize you worthy of the Coal Badge," Roark reached into his shirt pocket, and like Gardenia, pulled out a badge, a TM and a wad of bills, "Along with it I give you this TM, Stealth Rock as well as my gratitude for a battle well fought,"

"My second badge! Now just six more to go!" Lucas announced triumphantly. In his excitement, the teen Trainer almost forgot about his new Gyrados, which was still in the Gym, rather than back in his ball. When he turned to his Pokemon, the massive water-type had a strange expression on his face, "Hey, Franky, are you...okay?"

Roark pulled back on the teen's shoulder, "Be very careful. Gyrados are extremely dangerous, and if you aren't ready, you're going to have a very large problem on your hands,"

Lucas shook his head and pulled free from the Leader's grip, "Franky is still Franky. I trust him. If there is something wrong, I'll help him past it. C'mon Franky, c'more boy!"

At that command, the Gyrados lunged forward.


	11. Chapter 11 Danger in the Mountain

Chapter 11: Danger in the Mountain

Roark panicked and ran back as the massive, monstrous water-type rushed dangerously towards its Trainer. During his battle with Lucas, Franky, the Trainer's Magikarp evolved into Gyrados, the legendarily strong water-type with a vicious temperament and powerful attacks. The Gym Leader urged the younger man to pull back, but Lucas stayed firm. He held his hand out as his formerly loyal Pokemon seemed to turn against him. Roark held his breath as the Gyrados finally reached its owner and...

...Touched his face gently against Lucas' palm. It still had a strange, pained look on his face, but grumbled softly as Lucas began to stroke the water-type's face. The teen smiled and puckered his lips, "D'aww, you're a good boy, aren't you, yes you are,"

Roark watched in amazement as the Gyrados reacted playfully to his Trainer's babytalk. The Pokemon rolled on its back and seemed to whimper.

"Oh, that's why you had that look on your face, you're itchy," Lucas scratched the scales on his Pokemon's back and the Gyrados wriggled happily, "Do you want a bellyrub now, fella?"

Roark finally walked back towards the teen and could not look away from the sight, "I have been training Pokemon for years. I have seen hundreds of Trainer's come through this Gym and I have never, ever seen a Gyrados with that cheerful a personality,"

"I told you, Franky's still Franky. I trust him," Lucas pulled his hands away from his creature for a moment, and was immediately headbutted gently by Franky, "Okay, fine, I won't stop petting you. People tend to be so nasty to Magikarp. They get angry at them, make fun of them, abuse them because they think it's funny, and then wonder why Gyrados are the Atrocious Pokemon. I've loved Franky since the day I got him. Why would he turn into something nasty just because he evolved?"

The Oreburgh Leader's eyes softened and he smiled gently, "You are right, Lucas, people really do underestimate you. You are truly an amazing Trainer,"

"Since you have your Coal Badge you'll probably be wanting to head for Hearthome City, that's where the next Gym is," the nurse from the Pokemon Center suggested as she handed Lucas' Pokemon back to him. His team was now fully recovered and back to their usual selves. It was a huge relief to see Gizmo up and around, "I have to tell you though, getting to Hearthome isn't easy. You have to go through Mt. Coronet. That mountain is huge, and full of lots of caverns. It will be a multi-day trip, and it is very easy to get lost. There are also no other Pokemon Centers between here and there, so make sure you are ready for the worst before heading out,"

"Thanks a lot for the advice. I won't be going through right away, I want to do some exploring before heading to the next Gym,"

"One other thing: watch out for those Pokemon thieves. Most of the thefts have been just outside of town or near the mountain," the nurse added before Lucas left.

_Ah yes, the Pokemon thieves_. Lucas thought to himself as he let Gizmo sit on his shoulder. It was because of them that he had been falsely arrested for looking 'suspicious'. Someone or some group had been stealing people's teams right from under them. At the Pokemart the teen actually met someone who said they were ambushed and stripped of their precious Pokemon. And now that he was paying attention, Lucas saw dozens of the warning fliers posted all over the inside and outside of town, including some on the cycling road, the fliers that told people to call police if there were suspicious people in the area. Lucas couldn't fault the person who had reported him, the tattooed, pierced teen with flaming red Mohawk made a point to look as different from other people, especially his brother, as possible. His only grief was with the police who hadn't even talked to him before tackling him outside the Oreburgh City Gym like he was caught in the act.

Though aware of the danger, the young man had other things more pressing on his mind. After seeing the fossils at the city's museum, and then meeting a real, live prehistoric Pokemon in his Gym battle, Lucas wanted nothing more than to dig in the underground caverns of the mountain and find some fossils of his own. Finding the opening to a small passageway in the rocks, the teen used his explorer's kit and started going through the dirt. At first, he moved quickly through the ground, sure any second he would find a cache that would let him resurrect a whole team of ancient creatures, but after several hours he was hungry, sweaty and tired, and all he had found were some pretty, but worthless rocks and a few colored shards of broken pottery. Discouraged, and aware of the day ending, Lucas gave up and returned to town.

The next day, Lucas got up early and tried again. Though less exuberant about digging than the previous afternoon, the teen decided he wasn't quite ready to give up. But when it was almost lunch time and the most interesting thing Lucas found was a stone that looked like a heart, the Trainer figured his best bet was to move onto somewhere else. Determined to find something, Lucas moved along the length of the massive mountain that was visible from almost the entire Sinnoh region until he was closer back towards Eterna City. Though he still didn't find what he was looking for, he did finally find something interesting. Lucas discovered a dim cave in the mountains full of Pokemon. He caught a Zubat, a Geodude and a strange little Pokemon the Pokedex told him was called Gible.

It was darker outside than he expected when he finally left the cave. The young man considered going back to digging, but the frustration of his bad luck, and the better success of exploring the caves for live Pokemon instead of dead ones, he decided his best course of action was to move on and start heading through the mountain proper and head for the next city. Fossils would have to wait, he knew he would get some eventually.

He remembered the nurse's warning about making sure he was well prepared for the journey through Mt. Coronet, but knew he was well stocked with medicines. Since his recent success in battle, he was no longer in danger of running out of cash, and didn't hold back in things to take care of his Pokemon. He decided to take the risk and entered the mountain.

Lucas pulled out his Pokevice and pulled up the map. Thankfully, the gadget had clear maps of the mountain's weaving caverns and paths, and with it he knew he would not get lost. He planned out the best route, and where would be the safest places to camp. If his estimation was correct, it would take him two days to get through Mt. Coronet itself, and then another half day to get to Hearthome City. He began to reconsider his decision on starting now, as almost three days was awfully long to go without access to the Pokemon Center. The teen didn't mind risking himself, but he would never endanger his Pokemon. Changing his mind, Lucas headed back towards the exit, now harder to see as the sun was now down and gone from the sky. As he stumbled and reached the exit he felt something grab him in the darkness.

A pair of arms seized his right arm as he felt another grabbed his left. Before he could react he could feel two more figures grab at him, his legs now caught in their grip. Lucas pulled against his attackers but their combined strength was too high, he was now caught in their grasp with their intentions unknown. He was in real danger now. It wasn't spooks or phantoms, but real villains who could actually hurt him, or worse. The vulnerability they made him feel was overwhelming. He was a trapped animal. Panicked. Afraid. Questions swirled in his head. Who were these people? Was he being arrested again?

One voice called out, "I've got his belt,"

Another added, "There's also one around his neck,"

A sudden bolt of clarity shot through his mind as he realized his foes' intentions. These people were the Pokemon thieves. The ones he was mistaken for, the ones he was warned about, and now they were trying to take his team. Any concern for himself immediately vanished: Gizmo, Franky and the rest were all in danger. His focus shifted as he concentrated on which one of his opponents had the weakest hold on him. Feeling the grip on his left leg as the least powerful, he jerked his leg up, breaking his foe's grasp. He contracted all the muscles in his body to shift his center of gravity and sent his leg hurtling over his head until collided with the person clutching his right arm. He could hear a satisfying crack from their head as his arm went free. With it, he sent a devastating punch into the soft stomach muscles of the captor of his left arm. Three of his limbs now free, he drove his elbow into the back of the neck of the final villain. Now free, an old part of himself came flooding back, the person he became in the middle of a fight. There was no such thing as a fair fight on the street, only ones you walked away from. His instincts heightened his senses, the experience of each fight calculating where to cause these people the most amount of pain and damage. Though he couldn't see where they were in the darkness, he knew where they had fallen, could hear their groans of pain. Legs, knees, feet, elbows, fists all finding vulnerable flesh and sensitive nerves in the blackness of the cave.

A fist from the darkness collided with his chin, one that would daze most people. Lucas ignored the ringing in his ears, this was nothing. Fists, chains, knives, guns. It didn't matter what they used against him, he would feel no pain as long as his Pokemon were in danger. To protect his new precious friends, who did everything he ever asked, he would sacrifice new life for his old in an instant. He didn't matter, he was nothing. Only they mattered in his life. Suddenly the lights of the cave flickered on, the artificial lighting put on the main path to guide those through the giant stony labyrinth. Now Lucas could finally see his opponents.

Lucas leapt back onto a rock, able to survey his surroundings in clear, defining light. The four people who attacked them were in various states of falling over the rocks, one was in the fetal position, and all were different levels of bloodied. One of his opponents was female. Lucas didn't care, in a fight, especially a fight with so much at stake gender didn't matter. He didn't start the fight, but he'd damn well finish it. The one thing he found strange is that they were all similarly dressed. They all wore a uniform that resembled something someone in the military would were. Army boots and military fatigues in dark blue and lilac with a patch over their hearts that looked like a crest of dark blue surrounded by gold where three stars, one large and two small formed a semi-circle.

The one that was in the best condition cried out after Lucas, "You little bastard! Who do you think you are?"

"Who the hell do you think _you_ are? You tried to steal my Pokemon." Lucas said in a low growl. He considered continuing the beating so known of them would be able to speak anymore. He held back though, as difficult as it was. If he knew who they were he could stop them from trying to attack someone else.

Despite their injuries to four assailants managed to drag themselves up and stood together at attention, "To destroy the weakness that plagues this world, like a cleansing light in the sky, we are Team Cosmic!"

"Team Cosmic?" Lucas was familiar with the stories of groups who would steal Pokemon to fulfill their ideology, but he had never heard of these jokers, "What does stealing my Pokemon have to do with weakness?"

"The world is flooded with weak, useless Pokemon and weak, useless Trainers. But weak Trainers often have strong Pokemon, or at least ones with lots of potential that would never be developed if they stayed with their owners. We strip these pathetic losers of their most useful Pokemon and add them to our ranks. Team Cosmic is about strength,"

"By sneaking up on people in the dark and ambushing them like pathetic cowards. And you talk about weakness," Lucas spat. The fact that they were thieves were bad enough, but their ideology left a bad taste is the teen's mouth.

"We don't have to defend ourselves against a blind fool like you, you annoying little punk!" the best conditioned Team Cosmic grunt snapped, "You might have beaten us with your cheap shots but this isn't the last you've heard of us! Team Cosmic Forever!"

With that declaration the four grunts ran deeper into the cave. Lucas knew they were right, this wouldn't be the last time he would face them. He was able to beat off four of them, but he had no idea how many more were crawling around Mt. Coronet like vermin. Tired, angry, and slowly beginning to feel his jaw ache, Lucas returned back out of the mountains and headed for the Oreburgh City Pokemon Center.


	12. Chapter 12 The Major

Chapter 12: The Major

"Team Cosmic?"

"Yeah, they've been the ones stealing people's Pokemon. They're dressed like they're in the army, but their uniforms are blue and purple. Their crest looks like a blue badge with three stars, two small and one large, and they are sort of arranged like the letter 'C,'" Lucas described to the lady police officer at Oreburgh City. In Mt. Coronet, Lucas had been ambushed by four Team Cosmic grunts who tried to take his Pokemon. The four criminals got more than they bargained for when Lucas defeated them not with his team, but with his fists. After the incident, Lucas came back to the city to recover at the Pokemon Center. The next morning he came to report who was behind the Pokemon thefts. Now he was at the police station, explaining what had happened, ironically, to the officer who had interrogated him a day earlier, thinking he was the thief.

"And this was in Mt. Coronet? Damn!" the officer swore. She got up from her desk and paced in front of her map of the entire Sinnoh Region, "That means we can't do anything,"

"Why not? You know who did it and you've got proof. What's stopping you from busting on in the mountain and kicking some ass?" Lucas asked angrily.

"The mountain is exactly the problem," the lady cop explained coolly. She had no love for Lucas, a boy she thought was a rude troublemaker but did her best to clarify the situation, "Mt. Coronet is huge, so huge that it divides the continent in half, it's the largest mountain in any of the Pokemon League regions. Even when people stay on the marked, known paths we sometimes have to rescue people who have been lost for months. Not including the unmarked paths or even paths created by Pokemon on the order of their Trainers, it could take years to scour the mountain properly. Basically, as long as Team Cosmic stays in the mountain, there is nothing we can do to stop them. The best we can do is make sure they don't come back to the city and warn people going through Mt. Coronet that Team Cosmic is here,"

Without saying anything Lucas stormed out of the cop's office and left the station. Lucas felt like it was a complete waste of his time. He tried to do the right thing by letting the cops know, even though cops were something he hated just about as much as his brother. Without accomplishing anything and knowing the twisted members of Team Cosmic were still crawling through the mountain, the teen made a decision. He would risk going through the mountain again, and confront any member of the evil organization head on. If the police couldn't stop them, he would.

Lucas headed back towards Mt. Coronet, ready for the nearly three-day-long trek that it would take to get to the next Gym in Hearthome City. Gizmo was curled around his neck, tail hanging over the front of his Trainer's shoulder, taking a nap. The teen admired how calm his Pokemon was being. He assumed his Eevee understood the situation, the danger that he was almost in the night previously, as Pokemon were quite intelligent. But Gizmo trusted Lucas so much that the idea of being stolen couldn't even cross his mind. The human, on the other hand, worried about it tremendously. If Lucas lost Gizmo, or any of his other Pokemon, he didn't know what he'd do.

The cavern was more familiar to Lucas the second time around. More of the sun's natural light illuminated the rocks and crags as he passed through the cave. The artificial light was now only deep in the tunnel, where the sun's rays couldn't touch it. The Trainer tread carefully, checking his Pokevice at each fork to make sure he wouldn't get lost. He was also hyper alert, waiting for the next ambush from a member of Team Cosmic. He doubted the four he beat up were the only ones there.

After several hours of being ambushed by nothing but Zubat, Lucas finally found what he was looking for. A female grunt jumped out from behind a boulder, a Pokeball in her hand, "Hold it Trainer! You better hand all your Pokemon over to me right this second, or I'll tear you apart. Nobody can beat the strength of Team Cosmic, and I don't have patience for weakness,"

Lucas sneered, "I'd say you're more patient that you give yourself credit for, you seem to put up with yourself quite nicely. But you ain't taking anything from me. I'm going to kick your ass with my Pokemon, and if I'm still in a bad mood I'll do to you what I did to your four buddies yesterday,"

"That was you?" the grunt gasped. Her confidence seemed to waver, "Go! Glameow!"

"You've heard of me. Good." Lucas's grin increased, "Go! Franky!"

The massive Gyrados came roaring out of his Pokeball, ready for battle. The grunt seemed even more frightened than before. Lucas was more than pleased with that. He wanted them scared of him. This group would learn one way or another that you don't steal Pokemon—not without consequences from strong Trainers like him. A short exchange of attacks later and Franky was the victor. Glameow was the grunt's only Pokemon and the battle was over. As the grunt threw some money at Lucas' feet and tried to run, he snatched the woman by her wrist.

She looked up him, her eyes wide in terror for her fate. Lucas smiled at her darkly, "You get to walk away without a limp today, but that's only because I want you to go tell whoever's in charge that I'm back, so they better clear out of here and never return,"

He let go of her arm and she ran off as fast as her legs could carry her. The message seemed to work for a little while. For several hours the young man didn't run into anyone. The Zubat attacks were too numerous so Lucas sent Gizmo back to his ball and even caught a new Pokemon, a steel-type called Bronzor. But as the natural light became supplemented by artificial light, and the teen calculated that the day was almost over, he was ambushed yet again. This time two men tried to attack him. In a short double battle with Sparky and Hotrod, Lucas once again came out victorious. This time he gave one of men a black eye. Clearly his warnings weren't working.

Finding a safe spot for the night to rest, Lucas camped out for the night. The next day the teen ran into more grunts, more often. The amount of members informed the Trainer, Team Cosmic was either getting desperate to stop him, or they were planning something else in the mountain. Another set of grunts tried to ambush him physically, and once again the grunts escaped with severe bruises, and one had a dislocated shoulder. The teen had to admire their stupidity, every wave of defeated grunts just brought more grunts and like every Pokemon battle and fist-fight so far, Lucas won every time. However, things started to change in the middle of the afternoon.

Because that's when _he_ appeared.

Though Lucas had won against every challenge brought against him, the battles were beginning to take a toll. The constant fighting was wearing him down physically, and his Pokemon medicines were running out faster than he had anticipated. He still had almost an entire day to go before he could get to the next Pokemon Center. Though his plan was to defeat Team Cosmic by himself, since the police couldn't do anything, he was beginning to think that maybe his best strategy was to avoid anyone else. The message was sent: Team Cosmic would not be able to do anything they wanted unchallenged. Now Lucas had to worry about his Pokemon, and do his best to protect them.

Intentions and reality have an annoying tendency to not mesh up and when Lucas turned left at a fork, he ran straight into the hornet's nest.

"There he is!"

"That's the guy!"

"I'll need stitches because of that bastard!"

All the grunts that Lucas had defeated, about twenty-four of them, were now standing around a single man. In addition to the grunts there were tables full of Pokeballs, maps, charts and boxes all arranged the lengths of the large cavern. Without meaning to, Lucas had stumbled onto Team Cosmic's base of operations. The man the grunts had been complaining to stepped forward. He was clearly their leader, his outfit looked more like a dress uniform than the grunts' fatigues. Black dress shoes, dark blue slacks, white shirt and blue tie, white gloves, all finished off with a neat, blue overcoat and trimmed with lilac. Over his heart was the Team Cosmic crest, while a second crest appeared on his officer's cap, the bill shadowing his eyes and obscuring his face.

"So you're the troublemaker who's been interfering with our plans," his voice was very deep, and he sounded very amused, "I must say I'm relieved that at least you're not just some ten-year old brat,"

"I take it you're the prick who's in charge of all these losers," Lucas remarked. Though he tried to come off as nonchalant, he was slightly concerned at how outnumbered he was.

"Yes, I am in charge of this operation. I am second-in-command of Team Cosmic, Major Mathias," the major took off his hat to reveal his face. Lucas was quite surprised by his appearance. He was clearly older than Lucas but still looked very young, he had dark purple hair and aqua green eyes. He had a thin, sculpted nose, high cheekbones and full lips. Honestly, he looked like a model out of a fashion magazine, but there was something about the way he smiled that made Lucas' skin crawl unpleasantly.

"You've been stealing Pokemon from innocent people. You even tried to take mine. I'm here to stop you," Lucas continued bravely.

"Oh, we don't want your Pokemon now that we know what you have. What use is an Eevee as leveled up as yours that hasn't evolved yet?" Mathias' smile widened, reminding Lucas of a snake about to strike, "Stealing Pokemon is only a side cause of our operation here. Our main goal is something that sleeps in this mountain. With it, Team Cosmic will create a new world order where we, the strong, will rule and all weak, useless Pokemon will be permanently eliminated.,"

"Eliminated?" Lucas remembered what his attackers last night said about ridding the world of weakness, but never bothered to make any kind of connection to it besides mindless propaganda. Now the teen realized what was meant by those stupid words. He felt like a bucket of cold water had been dumped on his body. He felt sick, queasy. Lucas loved almost all Pokemon. He thought even the creatures people considered weak and annoying like Magikarp and Pidgey had something special and wonderful about them and the idea that a group had horrific an ambition as to destroy certain Pokemon sent a flood of rage Lucas had never felt before. White-hot anger blinded him. He ran towards Mathias, his fist hurtled towards the smug man's face, "You bastard!"

Lucas had never seen a person move so fast. Mathias caught Lucas' fist with his right hand and twisted the teen's arm so hard behind his back that if he had used any more force on his arm, it would snap. The young man was at his enemy's mercy now, something that made Lucas feel both incredibly angry and foolish for allowing himself to get caught. Mathias brought his face close to the pierced boy's, his malevolent smile sending a shudder down the teen's back, "I like your spirit. So what's your name?"

"Screw you! That's my name!" Lucas snarled, as he tried to figure out how to get out of the man's grip.

"People shouldn't make proposals they don't intend to follow through on," Mathias remarked casually, his breath hitting Lucas' ear. The younger man could feel his face flush involuntarily. The major slid his hand into the teen's left vest pocket, causing the younger man to shudder as he pulled out his Trainer ID, "So your name is Lucas. Says here you're from Cherrygrove City in Johto. Looks like you're a long way from home,"

"Get off of me, you old creeper!" Lucas finally barked as the major slid the card suggestively back into his pocket. With his steel-toed boot, he drove his foot into the kneecap of his assailant, causing the other man to buckle and finally release his grip. The teen jerked away and leapt back, well out of the major's reach.

"Old? I'm only twenty-seven," Mathias huffed indignantly as he nursed his throbbing knee. The grunts moved forward to defend their leader but he motioned them to stay back, "You have useless Pokemon, but you, yourself, is strong. We could use someone like you in Team Cosmic,"

"You're still a creeper. And you are old to me, I'm only sixteen, you pedo. And there is no way in _hell_ that would I _ever_ join a group that talks about destroying Pokemon," Lucas growled.

"What can I say, you're younger than you look. But it's stupid to turn me down. When all is said and down Team Cosmic will achieve its goals, and it's important to be on the right side. Join us, join me and I can guarantee you'll get everything you deserve," Mathias said coolly as he finally straightened up.

"No thanks," Lucas said darkly.

Mathias pulled out a Pokeball and looked like would attack. The other grunts got ready for their leader's orders. But the major appeared to change his mind and put the ball back into his coat. He turned to his subordinates, "Our interests lie elsewhere, we will be going deeper into the mountain," he then turned to Lucas, "You can have these Pokemon on the tables, they're of no use to us. All of them are weak. We will meet again, Lucas, and next time I hope you change your mind about joining us. I find you desirable in more ways than one,"

With that, the Team Cosmic second-in-command motioned for his troops to move out. When they left Lucas pulled out his Pokevice and called the Oreburgh Police Department to let them know that the stolen Pokemon had been found.


	13. Chapter 13 The Coordinators

Chapter 13: The Coordinators

The rest of the journey through Mt. Coronet was uneventful. After facing down and beating twenty-four members of Team Cosmic, the group responsible for stealing Pokemon from people in Oreburgh City, only to end up in the humiliating grasp of their commander, Major Mathias, Lucas was happy that he didn't run into anyone else as he trekked through the caves of the massive mountain. The transition from artificial light to the bright sun almost left the teen Trainer blind, but when his eyes finally adjusted back to real light, he was greeted by a series of bridges and cliffs, and the soothing roar and sight of a massive waterfall.

Having more time to himself, he explored more of the functions of the Pokevice and learned more about the Sinnoh region. The officer from the previous city wasn't exaggerating when she described Mt. Coronet as huge, the mountain did take up most of the continent. And there were even several cities that were either in the foothills of, or directly on the mountain. Mt Coronet was the source of most of the continent's water, where all rivers eventually flowed into the ocean or the three large lakes that peppered the region. The huge mountain was also responsible for several large waterfalls, including the one that Lucas was looking at now. The teen took a few moments to enjoy the view before moving on. It would still be several hours before he would make it to Hearthome City, the location of the next Gym.

Lucas continued to admire his surroundings, but something else he learned about the mountain made him feel uneasy. One small comment from his Pokedevice mentioned that according to an old legend, Mt. Coronet was supposed to be the resting place of the creature who created not only the Sinnoh region, but also the universe. Team Cosmic's commander stated that stealing Pokemon from Trainers was only part of their operation, that they were looking for something in the mountain that would give them the power to change the world to their ideals: to subjugate and destroy the weak. As he moved more out of the mountains, his surroundings turning from rocky cliffs to open fields, he still couldn't get his mind off of the subject. It wasn't until he starting hearing desperate screaming that he finally focused on something else.

The first time he heard it he thought it was just his imagination, but with the second chorus of screams, louder than the first, that Lucas realized what he was hearing was real. Despite his exhaustion, the teen ran to the source of the shrill cries for help. A small group of Team Cosmic members, stragglers from the main operation inside the mountain, Lucas guessed, were surrounding four teen girls. The girls were cornered against a stony wall, one girl out in front protecting her friends with her body while the others shrieked and cowered in mortal fear.

"Listen you stupid bimbos, just hand over your Pokemon!" the main grunt snarled.

"No way! You're going to have to kill us first!" the leader girl snapped back.

"Don't think that's an option that's off the table!" the grunt sneered threateningly. As Lucas rushed to punish the Team Cosmic cronies who were trying their treachery once again, he tripped over a large rock in his way and landed face-first on the ground. He finally could see the leader girl in full detail and when saw her, her appearance startled him so much that he didn't look where he was going. To him, she was gorgeous: she had a heart-shaped face with big blue eyes, a small button nose and a small mouth. Her hair was light-brown and kept in a neat bob that only went down to her chin, and was held out of her graceful face with a headband. What drew the teen boy's attention the most, however, were her shapely legs that were fully visible under her skirt.

When the young man finally pulled himself up, all of Team Cosmic's attention was on him. Though momentarily disadvantaged, Lucas put himself back into power when he started striking the grunts with his hands and feet and cleared a way for the pretty girl and her friends to escape. The girl took the opportunity and ran with it, startling her fear-stunned friends into action and giving them the first chance to run towards the city and escape to safety. Rather than running away herself she caught up to Lucas and asked, "Are you a Trainer?"

"Y-yeah," Lucas stammered stupidly.

"Then team up with me, double-battle," she pulled out a Pokeball and waited for the teen boy's response.

"Right!" his senses momentarily back to him, he repeated the action and pulled off a Pokeball from his own belt, "Go Franky!"

"Go Whisp!" his new partner summoned a Ninetails and it stood next to the Gyrados, waiting for its first command. The Team Comic grunts took action and summoned their own Pokemon. Within a short time three were quickly defeated, and like their compatriots, as soon as they lost they ran for the mountains, hoping for safety in their commander's care. The next grunt was a little tougher. Summoning an Onix, the girl replied by taking her Ninetails back and summoning out a second Pokemon, "Your move, Rex!"

Lucas wasn't familiar with the Pokemon, but it appeared to be a very strong fighting-type. It looked something like a dog standing on its back legs with blue and black coloring. Whatever it was, it was incredibly strong. With just one hit the Onix was down. Just two more grunts to go, the assault was just moments from ending. The girl recalled her Pokemon again and sent out a third. This time her Pokemon was a rabbit-like creature with long legs and fluffy chest. Lucas followed suit and recalled Franky for Gizmo. The last two grunts were defeated quickly and as they ran for the hills they screamed, "This isn't the end! Team Cosmic forever!"

With a satisfied smile, the girl recalled her Pokemon and turned to Lucas, "You're really strong. And I don't just mean as a Trainer. It was really brave of you to fight against those crooks like that. We couldn't have gotten away without your help. Thank you from the bottom of my heart,"

"I, ah, I, ah," Lucas tried to think of something to reply with as Gizmo climbed back onto his Trainer's neck. Normally, the teen from Cherrygrove City was a loudmouthed, cocky punk who was never afraid to say anything to anybody. He was more likely to say something stupid without regret to someone he shouldn't have, instead of not knowing what to say. But there was a very large exception to his behavior, a personality trait the pierced, confident young man hated about himself. He could say anything to anyone, speak his mind and stand up for his beliefs—unless he was talking to someone he found attractive. At that point Lucas would go to pieces: his mind would go blank, his face would turn bright red and he'd be completely tongue-tied and shy. All his life, any of his relationships had had to be started by the other person because his ability to talked to be people he liked completely failed him. This case was so bad he couldn't even make basic conversation with someone even after a dangerous situation.

The girl seemed to overlook or simply didn't see Lucas' awkwardness, "My name is Ashley, it's very nice to meet you,"

"Lu-lu," the boy felt like he could punch himself. Now he couldn't even get something as basic as his name out.

"Lu lu?" Ashley asked curiously.

The boy commanded himself to pull it together, "Lucas. My name is Lucas. And this is my Eevee, Gizmo,"

"Is it safe yet?" One of the girls Ashley was protecting peeked out from behind a tree.

"Yeah, Team Cosmic is gone. And we have Lucas to thank for it," Ashley said cheerfully. The three girls came out of hiding to greet their savior. They eyed him slightly suspiciously but as Ashley stood confidentially they became more comfortable and thanked Lucas in turn.

It was a little easier to speak now that there were others around, "So where are you guys headed? There might be more Team Cosmic goons around, so you need to be careful,"

"All of us are headed for Hearthome City," Ashley explained.

"Hey, that's where I'm headed as well. Going to challenge the Gym?" Lucas asked over-eagerly.

"Actually no. We're Pokemon Coordinators, we're here to enter the Super Contest," one of the other girls explained.

"Contests? Coordinators? What are those?"

"You honestly don't know about Pokemon Contests?" Ashley's three companions gasped together.

"I'm from Johto. We don't have them there. At least I don't think so," Lucas admitted.

Ashley was the one to explain, "Pokemon Contests are competitions where Pokemon are judged on their appearance and health, their charisma and their grace. And Coordinators are the people who enter the Contests,"

"You mean it's basically a Pokemon beauty pageant. No offense, but that sounds kind of lame. Not every Pokemon is going to be pretty like a Butterfree or cute like a Pikachu. Pokemon shouldn't be judged on their looks," Lucas stated.

"Actually, we're _very_ offended." Ashley said sharply. Lucas could feel his face turning bright red again. He didn't want to make her angry. Seeing his sheepishness, Ashley's anger softened, "It's not a beauty pageant. Appearance has to do with how well the Pokemon was raised, not how it looks." The Coordinator pulled out a box full of brightly colored ribbons as well as a small case full of what looked like candy, "There are five categories for Pokemon in a contest: Cute, Cool, Beauty, Tough and Smart. I typically enter in the Beauty and Tough categories. Then based off of a set of criteria, a Coordinator's Pokemon is judged on whether or not it was raised to reflect the standard. This actually requires just as much training as if you were entering a Pokemon League battle, including leveling your Pokemon up, and you have to watch everything they eat as well. Then their charisma is judged, this is to see if the Pokemon was treated well, how well it moves, if it has a healthy temperament. Then comes the hardest part, the grace part.

"Just like in a battle, there are type advantages and disadvantages as well as moves that work better than others. Use the wrong move at the wrong time, and it could cost you big. It requires a lot of strategy, because there are moves your opponent can use that completely sabotage you,"

"Sounds complex," Lucas admitted.

"It's very complex, but the four of us are the best," Ashley said proudly, "We're all Master Ranked in Hoenn, where we're originally from. So we've come here to increase our rank even more. My goal is to be the best Coordinator there ever was,"

Something about the way Ashley passionately described her goals that make her seem more beautiful to Lucas than before. Her eyes sparkled as she explained the Contests. None of the people Lucas was ever in a relationship with every had any interest in Pokemon. Most of his exes were members of his gang, and didn't care about the creatures or training at all. This was the first girl the teen had ever met that both shared his passion for Pokemon as well as find deeply attractive with her kind face and gorgeous legs. Even is she was so different than him, and so different from anyone he was ever with before, Lucas wanted nothing more than to be with her. He had to find a way to spend as much time with her as possible. Just then he got an idea, "Like I said, I'm going to Hearthome myself, so I'll escort you four and make sure nothing bad happens to any of you,"

"Oh Lucas, we couldn't ask you to that," Ashley stated, a slight flush on her own cheeks now appearing.

"I want to. Team Cosmic keeps trying to hurt Trainers and their Pokemon. And when you have such an important goal it makes me mad to see someone try to destroy it. So I'm going to make sure that doesn't happen. Someone like you deserves to be protected," Lucas looked away from her face, the only way to deliver that important information without his brain failing him.

Ashley walked right up to Lucas and placed her hand on his arm so that he would look at her. The Mohawk-bearing teen dared to glace at her, a deeply grateful smile on her pink lips. He could feel his face turn the same color as his hair, "Thank you Lucas, I hope one day I can find a way to thank you for your kindness,"

Lucas awkwardly took the front of the path towards Hearthome City. As he glanced back to make sure the four girls were following comfortably, Ashley smiled at him again. For a brief moment his hormonal male brain thought of something Ashley could do to thank him and, once again not paying attention, crashed headfirst into a tree. All Gizmo could do was sigh.


	14. Chapter 14 Super Contest

Chapter 14: Super Contest

After a three day trek from Oreburgh City through Mt. Coronet, where Lucas had to face the evil Team Cosmic and save a beautiful girl and her friends, the teen Trainer was totally exhausted. But this exhaustion seemed to temporarily melt away when the five young people finally arrived in Hearthome City. Hearthome was the most interesting town Lucas had ever seen. It was massive, stretching further than the pierced young man could see from the top of the hill just before the city gates. Unlike the big cities Lucas had been to before, such as Goldenrod City in his home region, and Saffron City in neighboring Kanto, Hearthome had an age and charm about it that the more modern cities lacked. There were no skyscrapers and very few modern buildings in the burgh, most of the structures were at least several-hundred years-old. The streets were paved with cobblestone and there was much more care and emphasis on craft and beauty down every street and pathway. Lucas thought if his gang were located here as opposed to his hometown of Cherrygrove, they would never deface or vandalize anything. The tiny cafes and quaint shops were the only thing keeping the worn out Trainer from just collapsing, and the only thing distracting him from Ashley.

Lucas initially went to Ashley and her friends' rescue because they had been attacked by the villainous Team Cosmic, a group with the morbid ambitious of eliminating weakness from the world by eliminating weak Pokemon, and the teen's newest enemy. But when the young man saw who he was rescuing, he fell for her, quite literally. During their final few hours before reaching the city limits, Lucas had tried desperately to think of things to say to Ashley that would make him seem worldly, charming and cool, but his crippling shyness around people he was attracted to made him fail miserably. None of the girls had been to Hearthome either, so now all babbling excitedly about the beautiful city and the upcoming Contest, the boy no longer had to try to talk to Ashley with awkward conversation. Though he was still desperate to find out if she found him as attractive as he did her.

The Pokemon Center was a welcome rest with the Trainers able to heal their drained Pokemon, as well as get a chance to rest themselves. Comfortable furniture, a chance for clean clothes and a hot meal separated Lucas from the girls for a while, and gave the teen boy a chance to get his thoughts in order and plan for his attack. He reminded himself he didn't come to the city to act like a brain-damaged puppy following a pretty girl around, he headed for Hearthome City to challenge the Gym Leader, and he needed to keep that goal in mind. Besides, a good match might inspire some classy line to say to Ashley, or impress her further with his Pokemon skills. She seemed genuinely delighted with him when they battled together outside the mountain. Lucas made a command decision, he would go to the Gym.

The young man caught up with the girls as they were seemingly preparing for their own ambitions. Ashley's friends were brushing and trimming their own Pokemon's fur and nails, and the pretty girl with bright blue eyes was pursing her lips as she scrutinized different items in a box with feathers and ribbons. Lucas' brain froze again as he watched the way her mouth moved as she had her mental debate, only nudged forward by Gizmo barking 'vi vi' to get his Trainer's attention. Lucas stepped forward, losing balance over his own untied bootlace and his voice cracked humiliatingly, "Oh, hey Ashley,"

"Hi Lucas, I see you got your Pokemon all healed up, would you like to see how we get ready for a Contest?" Ashley asked cheerfully, seemingly happy to distract herself from whatever difficult decision she had planned.

"Er, ah, um," _Sweet Jesus, how is it physically possible for you to be this much of an idiot?_ He told himself, "Actually, no. I just wanted to say I'm off for my Gym battle. Would, er, you? I mean since you like Pokemon and everything. I'm going to the Gym to battle the leader. Do...you..ah...want to...come, watch? Or something. You know, if you're not busy,"

Ashley frowned, "Oh, we can't. The Contest is starting in about twenty minutes, we're running late as it is. If you go now that means you won't be able to see us either. Are you sure you can't wait with your Gym battle until the Contest wraps up?"

Lucas was already mentally screaming at himself for the previously pathetic strand of words his malfunctioning personality put together, but as the next set of words came out of his mouth seemingly on their own, he felt like he wanted to jump off of a cliff, "No, I really can't. I-I-I really, um, what's the word again? Wish I could. I need to go fight the Gym Leader now,"

"Oh..." Ashley said with a definite tone of disappointment. The other three girls recalled their Pokemon and Ashley gathered her things, "We need to go now, too. Maybe you can see one of our Contests in the future. Good luck with your Gym Battle, Lucas, I know you'll win,"

_Stupid! Stupid! Stupid! _As soon as Ashley and her companions left the Center, Lucas spent several minutes smacking his forehead against one of the building's columns. Only stopping when his bangs were light gray from being coated with the wall's plaster. He had a perfect opportunity to get close to Ashley and share her interests and for no other reason except he was physically incapable of declaring to a person, 'Hey, I think you're hot and we should go out sometime,' without royally screwing up. But what was done, was done, and he really did have to go to battle the Gym Leader. He certainly didn't have to do it that particular _moment_, but he still had a goal to achieve, girl or no girl.

Pokevice in hand and Gizmo on his shoulder, Lucas found the Gym, easy to spot as it was the only modern looking building on the block. He read the sign to give himself an idea of who and what he was up against.

_Fantina: The Alluring, Soulful Dancer._

"Well, that tells me_ nothing_," Lucas snapped irritably. His bad mood was only getting worse, but his final straw snapped when he saw a second, handwritten sign on the Gym's front door: _Closed for today, come back tomorrow_. The teen reread the sign over and over, eyes bulged in rage, examining the looping scrawl as though he may have missed something the six words may have meant, "What the hell is wrong with this region? What is it with Gym Leaders never being in their _goddamn Gyms_?" Lucas almost punched the wall when a sudden thought occurred to him, "Wait, if the Gym is closed for today that means I can go watch Ashley. And if she asks why I came back I can tell her the truth!"

Bad mood instantly erased, the young man headed towards the Contest pavilion. Like the Gym, the pavilion was easy to find. Not only was it modern in design, it was also the largest building in the city, and brightly decorated to get attention for the day's events. Lucas pushed himself through the crowd of onlookers and competitors, scanning desperately for Ashley in the crowd. Once inside Lucas spotted her immediately, his thorough scanning completely unnecessary. He suspected he'd be able to see Ashley even if the crowd were ten times as large. She was with her three friends, nervously fiddling with her Pokeball, but instead of her simple, but stylish, blue skirt and white blouse, she was wearing an off the shoulder ballgown with long, white gloves. She looked like a princess from a fairytale, and dazzled by her appearance, Lucas completely missed the table that was right in front of him, sending both himself and the piece of furniture hurtling to the ground.

"Imbecile!" a voice shrieked angrily with a heavy accent. A lady wearing a garish purple dress and elaborate purple hair was scowling from above where the teen landed on the ground.

Lucas tried to disentangle his sore limbs from between the bent legs of the aluminum table and not do further damage to the brushes and bottles he sent flying from his initial fall, "Sorry about that,"

"You utter fool! Idiot! Why don't you watch where you walk?" The woman continued to scream, her speech punctuated by sentences of French the young man could only assume weren't G-rated, "How dare you interrupt me as I prepare for the Contest? Especially with your disgusting, tasteless clothes!"

"Hey, you old hag, I said I was sorry! Next time don't stick your damn table in the middle of where people walk! And you should go around insulting people's appearances when you're about one step from being a Drag Queen!" Lucas barked back, once again unleashing his temper.

The woman slapped him across the face with her left hand and walked away, muttering more French under her breath. Lucas rubbed his the sore spot on his face when a voice from behind startled him, "Oh Lucas, are you all right?"

The boy spun around to find he was face to face with Ashley and her figure-hugging ballgown. He felt his face flush once again, _Oh my god. Please tell me she didn't just see that._

"I understand she was mad but she really had no right to strike you, the table was an accident and you were right about not putting it in the walkways. Those are clearly marked so these things don't happen," Ashley put matter-of-factly. Lucas barely heard the words, instead he contemplated asking Franky to bite his head off and put him out of his misery, "What are you doing here, anyway? I thought you were going to challenge the Gym Leader,"

"I was. She wasn't there. The Gym was closed so I figured, you know, I'd still be able see you in your Contest. And cheer you on. Or whatever," Lucas tried to say nonchalantly. He at least was pleased with himself that he was able to spit out a sentence without completely crashing at it.

"Well, I'm really glad you're here. The Tough and Beauty contests are the last two events. I hate going last. I get so nervous when I see everyone else compete," Ashley confessed. The teen boy hadn't previously paid much attention to anything but the dress, but now he could see the girl almost looked sick, and as though she was about to cry.

"I know you'll be great," Lucas said genuinely. Ashley flashed him another one of her knee liquifying smiles and together they waited just outside the show ring.

From the sidelines Lucas was finally able to see how the contests worked. Initially, the judges walked around the ring and examined the Pokemon. The Pokemon themselves were dressed with decorations reflecting a theme described on a large projection screen. Then the Pokemon danced to a piece of music to judge their coordination and speed and finally they displayed the strength of their attacks. All three of Ashley's friends entered in the Cute, Smart and Cool categories before her first round in the Tough category began. Her friends had varying levels of success but none of them had won. All three did well with the costumes and grooming, but one wasn't able to keep in step to the music, and another got psyched out by one of its competitor's attacks. Their mistakes seemed to rattle Ashley more and more and when the announcer asked for the Tough entries to come to the ring, the girl was trembling.

For a brief moment Lucas forgot his own awkwardness and only focused on Ashley's. As she got up and shuffled to the ring, Lucas grabbed at her hand without even thinking, "Ashley. I've never seen a Contest and I don't know anything about them. But in the short time we've known each other I've gotten a good idea that I know you. You will kick these guys' ass. And you will do it in a damn sexy dress,"

Ashley smiled again, one that seemed greatly relieved. She gently slipped her hand from Lucas', her finger tips brushing his, and took a deep breath. With renewed confidence she marched into the ring and lined up with her fellow competitors. Among her rivals she stood out for one main reason, in the Tough Contest, she was the only female. While dressed in nice suits and tuxedos, the other Coordinators were all burly, stern-looking men who looked like Hikers and Fighters. The announcer introduced the competitors and they all released their Pokemon, mostly fighting, rock and ground-types. Ashley was using her Pokemon, Rex, which Lucas found out was a Lucario. He stood sternly and confidently, patiently waiting as the judges examined him and his accessories. After they finished the music started to play. The Pokemon began to dance, trying to do the movements the lead Pokemon was doing in time to the rhythm. While the other creatures kept their eyes on the leader, Rex didn't take his eyes off of his Trainer, watching her gestures and staying in time. Finally it was the Lucario's turn as the lead dancer and Ashley gave him a gesture and mouthed the word 'now'. The Pokemon began dancing, moving gracefully and quickly, doing complicated moves so fast his rivals had no way of keeping up with him or matching his rhythm. When the music ended the winner of the round was clear, but there was still the final part of the competition: the display of moves.

Once again, the Coordinators and their Pokemon took turns, displaying their most powerful Tough moves as well as trying to unnerve their opponents, but Ashley and Rex stayed calm and in charge. Each one of Rex's moves dazzled the judges, and after the final move the competitors lined up once again to hear the announcement of the winner. The choice was clear, Ashley and Rex were victorious. When her name was called out the ring filled with applause. Lucas screamed and whistled like he was at a rock concert, much to the ire of the people standing around him. He didn't care, Ashley had won. Ashley tried to hold back tears of joy as the Super Contest Tough ribbon was placed on Rex. She wrapped her arms around her loyal Pokemon and showered praise. The Coordinator pulled herself together quickly though, as she still had one more competition to face.

The Beauty Contest started immediately after the Tough Contest, so Ashley didn't bother to leave the ring. She recalled Rex and summoned out her next Pokemon, the other creature she had used in battle when she and Lucas had teamed up, her Lopbunny, Luna. The other contestants entered the ring and the entire Hall erupted into a roaring cheer when one particular Coordinator entered the ring, Lucas immediately recognized the flamboyant purple dress and elaborate hair. The woman everyone was cheering for was the woman who had slapped him. The announcer tried to introduce everyone's names over the deafening noise but Lucas was able to hear this woman's name as clearly as if it were the only sound in the room. The woman who had slapped the teen's name was Fantina. Fantina was the same name as the Gym Leader who had shut down the Gym for today. Fantina was the woman he had called an 'old hag'. He had insulted the Gym Leader he was planning on fighting. Lucas let out a groan and covered his face with his hand.

The young man's momentary concentration on his own bad temper ended quickly as the next competition began. The Coordinators sent out their Pokemon and the next round started. The judges examined the competitors and the music once again came booming from the speakers. Like Rex, Luna looked at her Trainer, not her opponents and when it was her turn as the dance leader Ashley's Pokemon once again put on a dramatic set of choreography that the other Pokemon couldn't match. None, that is, except one. Fantina's Pokemon was a ghost-type called Mismagius and it was moving with the same grace and speed as Luna, not missing a step. Mismagius then became the leader herself and put on a complicated routine. Luna focused only on Ashley, but Ashley was beginning to look intimidated, her non-verbal commands to her Pokemon becoming shaky. Then she made a mistake. Luna took a tiny step right instead of forward. To the audience, the mistake was probably invisible, but the judges didn't miss it. Ashley's confidence began to waver. The attack display came up next and ended up focusing on just two Pokemon, Fantina's Mismagius and Ashley's Lopbunny. The other three competitors fell to the wayside when their attacks were clearly no match for the Beauty of these two opponents. Neither Pokemon missed, neither creature wavered, neither of the two made even the tiniest error. It would look like this competition would be a Stalemate.

After the final attack the judges huddled to themselves and talked urgently, almost to the point that they were looking like they were arguing. Ten minutes passed, then twenty, and still no consensus from the judges. Finally, after almost forty-five minutes the judges made an announcement. Ashley and Fantina stood side by side, waiting for the judge holding the ribbon to present the winner. The teen girl tried to remain calm and poised, but Lucas could see her bunched fists tremble slightly. The judge seemed like she was leaning towards Ashley, but then quickly turned around and handed the ribbon to Fantina, "The year's Super Contest, Beauty Category winner is Hearthome's own Soulful Dancer, Fantina!"

As the building once again exploded in applause, Lucas' snarl of protest was drowned out. Fantina mugged to the crowd, blowing kisses and curtseying dramatically. Ashley slumped her shoulders sadly, but embraced her Pokemon lovingly nonetheless.


	15. Chapter 15 Donna

Chapter 15: Donna

The arrival to the Pokemon Center was bittersweet after the end of the Super Contest. Ashley had won the Tough category but had lost the Beauty category, and none of her friends had won any ribbons at all. She still insisted they go out and celebrate but as time wore on and it got dark there was a noticeable gloominess to her mood. Exhausted, her friends all went their rooms and went to sleep, but Ashley stayed around the lobby, sitting on one of the Center's sofas and seemed lost in thought. Lucas could see something was upsetting her, but while his awkwardness around the girl he liked was lessening, it was still there. He sat next to her on the large piece of furniture and said nothing. He played with the piercings on his lips and ears, a nervous habit that always annoyed his mother. Finally, the silence caused Ashley to crack, "Hey Lucas, ever hear of Amity Park?"

"Hmm? No, don't know much about this region, so I don't know anything about this city," Lucas admitted, though caught off guard by the sudden question.

"It's a place for people and Pokemon to play together. Kind of like a dog park. Want to check it out?" Ashley explained.

"Yeah, that sounds fun. My team could use a little relaxing before facing the Gym Leader. And I want to see if I can teach Franky 'fetch'," the teen boy pondered aloud. The two Trainers got up and headed for the park.

"Franky's your Gyrados, right?"

"Yeah,"

"And you think you can teach him fetch? Aren't Gyrados really unruly and aggressive?" Amity Park was towards the center of the city, behind both the Gym and the Contest Pavilion. It was very large, like most things in the city, and fenced it with simple but elegant wrought iron. The gates themselves were large buildings, clean and cheerfully painted, though colors hard to see in the increasing night.

"Franky's different. He's a very happy Pokemon, likes bellyrubs, not your typical abused-Magikarp-evolved that most people raise," Lucas explained. The two Trainers headed through the gates but were stopped by a ranger.

"Welcome to Amity Park, where you can play with your Pokemon. Unfortunately, we have rules about which Pokemon are allowed to roam. Please check the list. If an unauthorized Pokemon is released I'm afraid we'll have to ask you to leave," the lady-ranger explained politely.

Lucas looked over to the list of allowed Pokemon and frowned, "Yesh, talk about Pokemon discrimination. The only Pokemon I can have in there is Gizmo. The only ones allowed are the tiny, fuzzy ones most people consider harmless,"

"Oh, I never knew about those rules," Ashley admitted, "I'm sorry Lucas. If you don't want to go in anymore I understand,"

"Nah, it's okay," Lucas shrugged and moved toward the park. Smiling, Ashley joined him.

It appeared the park was mostly empty at night, though several streetlamps lined the massive expanse of field and water giving the area a soft, warm, safe glow to it. There were little bridges that went between tiny islands in the pond and what appeared to be some old ruins in the distance. Gizmo hopped off of Lucas' shoulder and began sniffing around and exploring. Ashley released her Ninetails, Whisp and the fox-like fire Pokemon joined the Eevee. The two humans found a bench and sat down, tired both physically as well as emotionally. Once again they sat in silence, staring at the trees and surroundings. The teen boy observed humorlessly that this scenario was much like the ones that were always in those teen romantic movies he hated but one of his ex-girlfriends loved. Now of course would be an excellent time to ask Ashley out on a formal date, especially as this was almost a date in itself. However, Lucas' speech was once again crippled by being around a pretty person.

Thankfully, it was Ashley who again broke the silence first,"Lucas, can I ask you something?"

"Urgh! Urk!" was the sound that came from Lucas' throat instead of words. Caught off-guard his face once again turned scarlet. The boy coughed and cleared his throat, "Gotta hate flies. Sure, ask away,"

"I'm really upset about losing the Beauty Contest. I mean, I know I should be thrilled. After all, I won Master Rank for Tough. And I am so proud of Rex, he did such a good job and he's such a great Pokemon, but...oh I feel like such a horrible person for this. Am I being self-absorbed and selfish that I'm so upset I didn't win Beauty, too?" Ashley confessed.

This was not the confession Lucas was expecting, but he was half-relieved over it, as well as half disappointed. He thought for a second and then answered her question, "I wouldn't say so. I'd say it's pretty normal, actually. It sucks to lose, even if you did just win something else,"

"And I mean, it's not even that I'm upset for myself. Luna worked just as hard as Rex this past year to get ready for this Contest. They were both Master-Ranked in Hoenn. It's just not fair that she lost when she was just as good as Rex. And it's all my fault. If I just didn't let myself get distracted I know I would have won. And I feel like such a loser even though people would have been thrilled just to have won Tough. I-I..."

"Don't beat yourself up. If you want to hear about self-absorbed, I'll tell you about self-absorbed. I know a guy who even though he was good at absolutely everything and everyone loved him, he didn't think that was enough. So he decided to after the one thing his little brother ever cared for and get good at that too. Then he goes and flaunts it in everyone's face and looks at himself as a god. Even decorates his own house with pictures of himself," Lucas said bitterly, the words coming easier and easier to Ashley. Gizmo came running back to his Trainer with a pretty shell in his mouth, "That's for me? Thanks little guy, you're the best,"

Ashley watched the Trainer and his Pokemon carefully, "That guy really does sound like a creep. I guess I just need to stop feeling sorry for myself. There's always next year, and I know Luna is a champion," The two became quiet again, watching their Pokemon play when Ashley turned to Lucas again, "I want to thank you, Lucas. You've been a good friend to me, and I appreciate what you said about me before I entered Tough. That you think you know me. The fact is even for all your kindness I don't know a thing about you,"

"What's there to know? I'm not exactly an interesting person. I'm not smart, I'm never the life of the party, I'm no hero, I suck at sports and I don't have any neat hobbies," Lucas shrugged. Her inquiry into his life made the teen blush again and get terribly nervous.

"Oh, I would definitely say you're interesting, Lucas. Okay, I'll tell you about myself. I'm from Lillycove. It's a beautiful port city in Hoenn, and it's also the home to the Master Contests. I used to watch the Contests every year and I promised myself I'd do that one day. I don't have any brothers or sisters, though I do have a friend in Hoenn that I consider a sister. I was raised by my aunt and uncle, my parents travel a lot so I never really saw them growing up. But whenever they came they always spent every minute of their time with me. I'm not very smart either, and I always hated sports because I don't like getting sweaty. I also hate turnips. I think they are the world's most disgusting vegetable and should be outlawed,"

Lucas looked at Ashley's smile and figured he wasn't really losing anything by talking about himself. He was already doing well in maintaining a conversation, he might as well keep the flow going. The teen took a deep breath and started from the beginning. He told Ashley that the self-absorbed person he described was his brother, how John became a Trainer even though he never liked Pokemon but became a Champion anyway. How he, himself joined a gang and spent a lot of time getting into trouble as an act of rebellion. About coming to Sinnoh and finding Gizmo, and then about Professor Oak and his journey, and how he was going to make something of himself. When he finished there was silence again.

Gizmo returned again, clearly done exploring and playing, and curled up in Lucas' lap. Ashley looked at the Pokemon in its content state and then looked to Lucas, "I would definitely say you're an interesting person Lucas. Not many people I know are as brave as you. Or as kind,"

Lucas met Ashley's eyes again, sparkling blue even in the low light. The boy's face once again turned hot and flooded with blood. And he was getting sick of it. He told himself he was going to change as a person, change people's view of him as nothing more than a useless troublemaker. And if he could change that much, he could change his shyness, too. He was going to take a chance. The teen took a deep breath and tried to keep his voice steady, "Want to go out with me tomorrow?"

"W-what?" This time it was the girl's lovely face that tinged pink. She became speechless.

"You know what I mean. I guess there isn't a movie theater here, but those cafes seem pretty swanky, so those would be a good place for a date, right? I mean, most of the people I've dated weren't into that sort of thing, but if you like it I'm cool with it," Lucas broke eye contact with her and rattled off his explanation, barely breathing between all the words.

Ashley bit her lower lip, trying to think of an answer. Her mood was not one of delight or being flustered, it was one that was more...apprehensive, "Lucas, you are a wonderful person, but. Oh, this is so awkward. But the truth of the matter is...you're not my type. You're a truly great friend, but I'm afraid that's all I see you as. All I ever did,"

"Ah." Lucas replied curtly, his face was burning so hot now he wasn't sure he didn't have a fever.

"I know that there is someone out there for you. Any girl would be lucky to date you. It's just that girl won't be me. I'm sorry," Ashley was genuinely sorry, she couldn't even hold eye contact with him anymore she was so embarrassed, but this didn't change how Lucas felt.

"No, I get it. You don't like me, you don't like me. The heart wants what it wants. It's good that we can be friends, at least," Lucas did his best to mask his feelings of rejection, but the truth is he was deeply hurt. It was so painfully difficult for him to approach someone he liked, and he had to overcome a personal weakness to do so. He made a gamble and lost, and he was unlikely to try again any time soon. The teen boy stretched his arms nonchalantly and scratched the head of his Pokemon, "I think Gizmo is getting tired,"

"Should we go back?"

"You go ahead, I need to take care of something before calling it a night," Lucas stayed sitting on the bench as Ashley hesitantly got up. She glanced a Lucas one more time, he was smiling casually as she left the park. As soon as he was sure the girl was out of his sight and not likely to come back, the boy gave into his emotions and sulked.

Lucas woke up late in the afternoon the next day, the first time he broke his new habit of getting up early since becoming a Trainer. He had stayed up very late the previous night from wandering over Hearthome City, trying to get over his rejection. He was still in his boxers and undershirt when he went for breakfast, and this is when he ran into Ashley and her friends once again. At first he was merely caught off-guard and embarrassed to run into her again so early after nursing his emotional wounds, and only being half-dressed to boot. The feelings quickly subsided when he noticed that all four girls were packed and ready for travel, "What's going on?"

"We're leaving, we're heading back to Hoenn. Our ferry leaves in a couple of days so we have to head to Sunnyshore City as soon as we can," Ashley explained bluntly.

"You're not leaving because of me, are you?" Lucas asked cautiously. He did his best to mask his feelings, but girls had an uncanny ability to figure out what you were really thinking and hold it against you.

"No! Not at all!" Ashley responded quickly, "The Super Contest is over, and there won't be another one for an entire year. There really isn't much reason to stay. Hoenn is my home and it's where I train best,"

"No, there really isn't any reason for you to stay, is there," the teen boy grimaced.

The girl pulled her backpack off and dug inside of it until she pulled out an oval, spotted object that looked like a large egg, "Lucas, I want you to have this,"

The young man tilted his head skeptically, not sure what to make of the gift, "What is it?"

"This is Luna and Rex's egg. I bred them in hopes of raising the Pokemon myself, but I would rather give it to you. I know you'll take good care of it,"

Understanding what it was and how significant it was for Ashley to give it to him, Lucas realized that what Ashley said last night wasn't just girl-code for 'I don't like you'. She did regard him as a friend and did care for him, even if it wasn't in the way he would have liked. With both hands he took the fragile Pokemon Egg, which was heavier that it looked and warm to the touch, "Thank you, Ashley,"

"Take care, Lucas,"

"Stay safe as you travel, if Team Cosmic shows up again I won't be there to save you," the pierced boy smirked, his mood finally elevated. With a final beaming smile, as beautiful and graceful as she looked when he first met her, Ashley left the Pokemon Center with her friends.

Lucas finally got dressed and left the Center himself. He carefully put the Pokemon egg in his own duffel bag before leaving, looking over it again. The shell seemed amazingly think, with a slightly sandy texture to it. Curiously he tapped it and heard some movement from inside. Smiling, he wondered how long it would take for the new Pokemon life to hatch. Though feeling better than he did last night, his heart was not yet ready to face Hearthome's Gym Leader, so the boy decided to further' explore the city. At night, most of the large metropolis' shops and restaurants were closed, so during his wandering, most of the time was spent just walking up and down the softly lit streets. Now in the day there were dozens of cafes for both people and Pokemon as well as a pretty cathedral with Pokemon gargoyles and lots of little shops that sold nicely-scented trinkets like the kind his mother always seemed to collect. He contemplated getting a gift for her as a 'thank you' for her lifesaving funds when he noticed Gizmo behaving strangely.

The loyal normal-type usually perched himself on his Trainer's head or shoulders, content to leisurely watch the world go by and comment on the teen boy's musings with approving or apprehensive chirps. Now the Eevee seemed totally disinterested as Lucas walked, skittering off of the teen's shoulder onto his duffel bag and pacing erratically. Confused to his Pokemon's actions, Lucas turned around to see what was exciting Gizmo so much. His movement caused the Eevee to hop back from the bag to his shoulder, but not out of loyalty, to go get a better look at what he was originally staring at. At a bookstore was a man almost in his thirties. He had wavy brown hair that was almost to his shoulders with an Eevee walking casually around his feet. Pokemon gender was difficult to tell with most species at a glance, but the little pink bow around one ear suggested to Lucas that this Eevee was a girl.

"Well that explains a lot," Lucas said mischievously, "She seems pretty cute, I suppose you'd like me to go over there and say 'hello' to her Trainer," Gizmo replied desperately. Pulling on one of the normal-type's long ears gently, the teen walked over to the man.

The female Eevee stopped her bored circles and sat in place to get a better look at the Pokemon on the shoulder of the boy approaching her Trainer. Seeing a change in her behavior, the man put down the antique book on Pokemon exploration he had been flipping through and turned around. He gave Lucas a surprised look as he glanced up and down the young man who was approaching him but immediately gave a look of sheer delight as his eyes locked on Gizmo, "What an absolutely adorable Eevee!"

"Gee thanks. I was wonder-" Lucas broke his train of dialog when the man grabbed Gizmo off of his shoulder without warning, "Hey, hold on a second there, bro,"

"Ah, this wasn't one of mine. It looks like either one of the wild ones from here in Sinnoh or a second generation one hatched from a native. He's got really nice fur, so you obviously feed him really well. Though I wonder where he got this scar from that's beneath his mane," The man jabbered, oblivious to the warning glare Lucas was giving him. Done examining Gizmo he handed the puzzled Pokemon back to his equally puzzled Trainer, "Oh, sorry about that. Eevee are my favorite Pokemon. My name is Bill,"

An old lesson from Pokemon School sprung to the front of Lucas' brain upon hearing the man's name, "Bill...Bill. Hey, aren't you the guy who invented the Pokemon PC system?"

"Yes, I'm the guy. Though I'm not responsible for setting up the system hear in Sinnoh. That work was done by my brilliant friend Bebe. It's always wonderful to meet someone who likes Eevees. Have you had lunch yet?

"No, can't say that I have,"

"Then why don't you come and join me, Bebe is cooking and she won't mind a third," Before Lucas could answer, Bill already had a grip on shoulder and was guiding him towards a small neighborhood, the female Eevee trotting lazily behind him.

The pierced boy didn't resist. After his experience with Professor Oak and Grant, and from what he had heard about Bill, Lucas had come to accept the fact that most people in the Pokemon scientific community were well-meaning, if incredibly eccentric people and trying to reject their generosity and kindness was usually ignored.

From the outside Bebe's home looked normal enough. It was a house that seemed as old as the city with timbers and wood siding. The only clue of the contents were a few small, though noticeable, antennas and satellite dishes. Inside the house was sheer pandemonium. Computer parts, papers, screens and tools littered almost every conceivable surface. And what wasn't covered with half-built hardware was occupied by a small army of Eevee frittering between table legs and bookshelves. Some napping, some playing with each other, though they all chirped happily when Bill greeted them. From a room Lucas assumed was the kitchen a voiced called out, "Chili's almost ready, set up the table,"

"You didn't make it too spicy, did you, Bebe?" Bill responded as he shooed a gray-colored Eevee away from a drawer and pulled out three bowls.

"No, I remember what happened last time. Not fun to do research with someone who pops antacids like potato chips," A tomboyish lady with plain brown hair tied up in a ponytail stepped out of the kitchen with a huge pot that was still bubbling slightly as she brought it to the table.

"Oh, this is...oh dear I don't know your name," Bill realized as he tried to introduce his guest.

"Lucas," the boy filled in. He wondered if people who were good at science were the oblivious or if it just came after years of work in the field.

"Lucas is going to join us for lunch, will that be a problem?"

"Not at all, I made too much of this stuff anyway," Bebe scowled as she studied one of the pieces of paper she was picking up to make room on the table, "Sorry about the mess. It normally isn't like this. I pride myself on being a neat-freak. Bill, on the other hand, is just a freak," she grinned.

Billed sniffed, "Turn yourself into a Pokemon just one little time and no one will let you live it down. Even if it happened almost _twelve years ago_,"

"So what are you guys working on?" Lucas changed the subject.

"A new computer system, or more or less an upgrade of the current system. Right now, the box systems don't communicate very well, so if you have Pokemon in one region, it's a pain and a half to get them to another region. So far the only computer systems that powerful are the ones owned by the professors. We're trying to build a cheaper system that can be put in Pokemon Centers around the world. We might be even able to get the systems set up in places that don't even have Pokemon. Imagine, start having Pokemon Trainers from places like France or the United States," Bebe explained. She glanced over at Lucas and sighed, "Bill, you really need to keep your critters under control, now they're crawling over the guests,"

"Actually, that Eevee is his," Bill explained.

"Ah, then that explains why he invited you over to lunch. When Bill says he's obsessed with Eevees that's not a cute little hyperbole. All these fluff balls you see running around are his,"

"What can I say, Eevee are fascinating. It's amazing how they can evolve into so many types. Do you have a particular version you want to evolve yours into, or are you going to let him stay an Eevee?" Bill asked curiously.

"I don't have much of a choice, you see, Gizmo _can't_ evolve," Bebe served out the chili as Lucas explained yet again how Gizmo became his Pokemon. As he told his story and ate, Gizmo left his Trainer to go play with the female Eevee Bill was walking with earlier in the day. Bill was actually sobbing at the end of the story, throwing his arms around the boy in a bewildering hug and calling him a hero.

The meal was soon over and it was time for Lucas to go, but however, he was reluctant. When he went to collect Gizmo, his Pokemon was sound asleep and cuddling against the female. After his own heartbreak, Lucas didn't have the heart to pull his Pokemon away from his new girlfriend. He remembered what the nurse from Eterna City had told him about someone in Hearthome that could take care of the Eevee if he didn't want it. He loved Gizmo very much, but he wondered if leaving him with Bill and Bebe would be the best for them both. Apparently, the male Pokemon researcher noticed the Trainer's dilemma.

"It looks like Gizmo has taken a real shining to Donna," Bill commented.

"Yeah, honestly that's why I approached you, because my Eevee liked your Eevee. It would really suck to have to separate them. And this little trip to Hearthome has already had someone's heart get stomped on. I don't want to do the same to my best friend," Lucas sighed as he contemplated his problem.

"Then why don't you just take Donna?"

"What? Really?" Lucas was taken aback by the offer.

"I love her, but I want her to be happy. And I don't want to take away your first Pokemon. Especially after everything you did to save him in the first place,"

"Bill, thank you," Lucas replied gratefully.

"But I do have one condition," Bill said warningly, "If you find the guy who was Gizmo's original owner I want you to knock his lights out,"

Lucas carefully picked up both sleeping Eevee and cradled them in his arms. Smirking to the Pokemon researcher he said, "Don't worry Bill, that was already the plan,"


	16. Chapter 16 Lucas vs Fantina

Chapter 16: Lucas vs. Fantina

Though the day started late, it was very eventful for the Trainer from Cherrygrove. Ashley and her friends left to go back to Hoenn, and she had given Lucas a Pokemon egg. Then, after some additional moping, the teen ended up spending lunch with Bill and Bebe, innovators of the Pokemon PC Storage System. Bill had ended up giving Lucas the female Eevee his own Pokemon, Gizmo, had fallen in love with. His mood had started out gloomy, but watching the tender affection between the two normal-types finally brightened up. Back to his old self, Lucas refocused on his goal, getting his next badge. The Gym Leader of Hearthome was Fantina, a flamboyant, eccentric Trainer who was also a Coordinator—the same Coordinator who had barely defeated Ashley during the Beauty competition. Based off of what he learned he established Fantina used ghost-types, and that she was at least partially responsible for Ashley rejecting him. While the rational part of his brain argued this was untrue, but the emotional part stated that he needed some kind of scapegoat for the hurt he had felt and the woman who slapped him was as good as anyone else.

Ghost-types where tricky. They were completely immune to normal and fighting moves, were strong against psychics and poison Pokemon and were only really weak against dark-types, of which Lucas had none. Additionally, he knew that many ghost-types had the ability Levitate, which made many ground-based moves totally useless—something he himself exploited with his Pokemon Sparky during his first Gym battle. This would take strategy, and some serious rearranging of his team. His Chingling, which evolved into a Chimecho during his trek in Mt. Coronet would have to go into the PC, as would Donna as her attacks were exclusively normal-type for the moment. He promised Gizmo she'd join the team again the instant they won the badge. Franky would stay with tremendously useful Bite attack, as would Sparky. While Hotrod didn't know any attacks that were super effective against ghosts, he at least was high level and a determined fighter. He decided his Kadabra, the Pokemon he traded for would make a good addition with its status effecting moves, even if it were psychic-type, which left Gizmo. Gizmo would be the centerpiece of his strategy. He couldn't have a sixth Pokemon because of the egg he was carrying, so his team would be as it was.

Lucas returned to the Gym that he first went to the previous day. This time the closed sign was gone, and determinedly, the teen stepped inside. The Gym was pitch-black, there wasn't a single functioning light as far as the Trainer could see. Was it still closed? Lucas wondered to himself, but an instinct told him otherwise. He stepped forward, hearing the clack of his boot heel against the tile echo through the the hall. He kept walking forward, the only sound his own feet and the breathing of both himself and his Eevee. Finally a dim light appeared just to the right of him. He stopped. The light slowly became brighter and brighter. Lucas held his breath. Finally the teen figured out what was happening, the light was a lantern and was held by a grim-looking Trainer with deeply set eyes.

"So you've come to challenge Fantina," he said hollowly, "You are brave to face the terrors of ghost-types, but bravery will do little save you from the powers ghosts possess,"

"Fine, whatever," Lucas was not about to be afraid by the elementary-school haunted house tactics this Gym was offering. Now that he knew what he was getting into, stumbling around in the dark was just going to be a nuisance, "Go! Hotrod!"

"Go! Duskull!" with the Charmeleon out, the shadow effects of the Gym were even less impressive, and the Junior Trainer's Ghost Pokemon was rather low level. With a few fire attacks, the Pokemon and its Trainer were defeated.

Fumbling around further Lucas ran into several more Junior Trainers. Their ghost-types got progressively harder and harder to beat, but Lucas continued to hold Gizmo back, using his other four Pokemon for the battle. After wandering seemingly endlessly through the black labyrinth the pierced teen found his way into a final room. Unlike the rest of the Gym, this room was blindingly lit, and Lucas was forced to shield his eyes from the sudden change in lighting. When his watery eyes finally adjusted he looked around the room. It looked like an ornately decorated parlor, paintings and furniture surrounding the stadium setting in the center. Across the room, seated in a Victorian-styled chair was the garishly purple Gym Leader.

"So you are not just an annoying, rude brat, you are also a Pokemon Trainer," Fantina snipped with her throaty French accent, "But it appears you still look like a tacky pincushion,"

"And you still look like a second-rate Drag Queen," Lucas replied, "I have come to challenge you for this Gym's badge,"

The Leader leisurely got off of her chair, smoothed out her dress and shifted a loose hair back into place, "Bonjour! I am Fantina, the Gym Leader of Hearthome City. I specialize the flowing grace and elegance of the ethereal Ghost Pokemon. I shall tear you and your Pokemon apart with poise and style! Prepare to lose, uncouth boy!" She pulled a Pokeball from her bra and summoned it to the field, "Haunter, mon cher! Go!"

The poison and ghost-type entered the field fluidly, a sinister smile on its face. Lucas knew enough about this particular Pokemon to know exactly what to do, "Go! Sparky!"

Lucas' own ghost Pokemon entered the field with a far less malevolent aura. The Pokemon curiously looked around the Gym and the people in it, before going within inches of the Haunter's face and giving its opponent a huge, happy smile, much to the other ghost's irritation. Fantina huffed her own irritation before calling out the attack, "Haunter! Suckerpunch!"

"Sparky! Confuse ray!" Lucas called out urgently. A Ghost Pokemon that knows dark-type moves seemed categorically unfair, but it did not stop the Leader's Haunter from landing a direct hit. The Rotom was sent for a loop and flung across the Gym. It was out with one hit. The teen snarled, this fight was going to be far harder than he anticipated. He pulled out a second Pokeball, this time not holding back, "Franky! Come on!"

"Shadow Claw!"

"Bite!" This time the Gyrados' speed advantage won out, and the Haunter was severely damaged, but not knocked out. It responded with its Shadow Claw, which did considerable damage to Franky, which Lucas did not anticipate. The boy wasn't about to lose, not to this nasty, stuck-up woman. If Franky hit first again, the Haunter would go down for sure, "Bite it again!"

The second hit took the ghost out and Fantina summoned out her next Pokemon, a pure ghost this time, another Duskull. Franky was still weak, so Lucas called him back and sent out Hotrod. The Charmeleon was effective against the first Duskull, perhaps he could do a repeat performance. Dragon Rages and Embers inflicted decent damage, and the fire-type avoided getting confused by the wily ghost, but the Duskull's Shadow Claw attacks were wearing him out quickly. The exchanged blows finally put Duskull ahead, and the stubborn fire-starter collapsed from its damage.

Lucas gritted his teeth. Though this woman looked and acted ridiculously, she was merciless as a Trainer. The teen was not about the back down or quit. She had beaten Ashley, and he would avenge her loss. The boy risked sending out Franky again, still weakened from the previous battle. All that he needed was one more Bite attack. He needed his other Pokemon for his strategy. Even exhausted, the Atrocious Pokemon still had some speed left and soon the Duskull was defeated. Now Fantina would summon her final Pokemon. Lucas knew exactly what it was going to be.

"Go! Mismagius!" Fantina summoned the Pokemon she used at the Super Contest. This was what her opponent had been preparing for. Lucas may not have been particularly clever, or even a master strategist by anyone's definition, but the boy had enough sense to remember exactly what attacks the Leader had used during the Contest. Contest Pokemon required different attacks than battle Pokemon, and while Fantina was a powerful battler, it was clear the Contests were her true passion. During her face-off with Ashley, both Coordinators used all the attacks they knew to try to impress the judges. Lucas now knew every single attack the Mismagius knew, and what to do about it.

"Franky! Good job, you've done enough," Lucas pulled out Kadabra, "Kazza, it's your turn! Use Disable!"

The psychic-type sat in a meditative state and shot a beam of energy out at his opponent. Fantina responded with another Shadow Claw attack, the Kadabra was seriously damaged but the effect was set. With Mismagius Disabled, the final piece of the puzzle was ready to be used.

"Okay Kazza, good enough, go, Gizmo!" the pierced teen exchanged Pokemon, and the expression on Fantina's face seemed to fall. This was exactly what he was expecting, "What the matter, there _Mantina_? Why, you look like like you've seen a Ghost, or, more like, something a Ghost can't touch,"

Fantina tried to act unfazed, "Ha! Why should I be concerned over a normal-type? Normal-types cannot touch ghosts, you stupid little boy!"

"Because that's the funny thing about Ghost Pokemon. Normal-type attacks cannot touch ghost-types, but in a weird relationship, ghost moves can't touch normal pokemon either. And I know every single move your Pokemon can make: Shadow Claw, Astonish, Night Shade and Psybeam. All ghost moves except Psybeam, which is a Beauty move that you used a lot in the Contest. But with Mismagius disabled, the only moves you have left are one that can't affect Gizmo,"

Fantina smirked, "Then it appears we are in a bit of a Stalemate. Neither of us can do anything until Mismagius isn't disabled anymore, since your Pokemon cannot touch my Pokemon,"

"See, that isn't exactly true," Lucas sneered, "Ready Gizmo?"

"Vi! Vi!" The Pokemon readied itself for its Trainer's command.

"Shadow Ball!" Lucas announced. Fantina's mouth dropped open as a ball of black and purple energy appeared above Gizmo's body. The ball got bigger and bigger and finally exploded towards the purple ghost floating in front of the Eevee. The Pokemon was crushed back, and fell to the ground from the impact. Struggling, it pulled itself up and looked back at its Trainer, desperate to know what to do next.

Fantina looked to her Pokemon and back to her opponent, "How is this possible?"

"Amazing what a TM will do, isn't it?" Lucas laughed, "I found the TM for Shadowball when I went through the stuff Team Cosmic left behind in Mt Coronet. Eevee don't have the greatest natural movepool in the world, but it's crazy what all sorts of moves they can move from TMs."

From that point on, the battle was Lucas'. Fantina hoped desperately for Mismagius to get over its disabled attack, but the opportunity never came. After three more Shadowball attacks, Gizmo was the victor.

The purple-haired Trainer ground her teeth and muttered angrily in French as she called back her defeated Pokemon. Lucas stood with a cocky grin, scratching Gizmo's head triumphantly. Though he was thrilled to have avenged Ashley's defeat, he only wished she had stayed around to see it. No, this victory wasn't for her, like all his others his victory was for him. He still needed to show the world he wasn't just some screw-up, that he had worth. Along the way he would probably fall in love again, find more enemies, make new friends, be happy, be sad. He couldn't forget his goal and this fuming woman and the feeling he got from beating her was just the reminder he needed.

"I Fantina, leader of the Hearthome City Gym, recognize you as the victor and award you the Fog Badge. Along with the badge I present you this TM for Shadow Claw, as you have found, a very powerful attack. Now get out of my sight,"

"Hey Fantina, I'm sorry about the Drag Queen remarks," Lucas said wryly, "Most Drag Queens usually make an effort to get rid of their five o'clock shadows,"

Fantina chased the boy out out of the Gym, screaming at him in French. Though he had no idea what she was saying, he had a pretty good guess.


	17. Chapter 17 The Old Well

Chapter 17: The Old Well

A third badge. Lucas examined the glittering piece of lacquered metal in the bright sunlight before putting it inside his vest with the rest. Keeping his promise to Gizmo, the boy immediately went back to the Pokemon Center to switch out his Kadabra, Kazza, for his other Eevee, Donna. Lucas smiled as the two normal-types were reunited and thought about his next step. It was time to leave Hearthome City and move on. Though the time he had spent in the metropolis was short, it was extremely eventful, and he still had five more badges to win. The teen restocked his supplies, settled on a small gift for his mother, though he wasn't sure if he was ready to send it to her, and wandered around the city one more time. He called Professor Oak to inform him of his progress and headed back out to the open road.

Lucas started to enjoy traveling. The time with just him and his Pokemon let him sort out his thoughts and analyze his life. The surroundings were mostly quiet, and always beautiful. He still wasn't a fan of the whole sleeping-on-the-ground thing, but the benefits certainly outweighed any negativity. The teen began to wistfully wonder why he let John's life control his own so much, why he just hadn't left for a journey earlier when he first wanted to, to see all the wonders the world had to offer. So many wasted years in Cherrygrove City doing stupid things he didn't particularly enjoy, and months locked in a cell defending the foolish pride of his gang. The teen thought some more. If he had become a Trainer earlier he wouldn't have met and saved Gizmo. Lucas was not a believer in fate or destiny, he believed things happened because things happened. Chance. Dumb luck. Poor timing. But the more he thought about what would have happened if he didn't save Gizmo, the more he realized he really didn't regret as much of his life as he first thought.

Professor Oak was right: we get good at things we love, we don't love things because we are good at them. So what if he couldn't beat the Champion of Sinnoh, let alone the other three? For the first time for as long as he could remember, even after Ashley, Lucas was genuinely happy. No. He did have to win. He had to prove that he was better than John when it came to Training. As long as John was the bar for which the world would judge him, Lucas would always fall short, and all of John's actions would dictate Lucas' life. If he was going to keep the happiness he now had as he watched Gizmo and Donna chase each other, he'd have to fight for it.

Checking his Pokevice, Lucas figured out where the next Gym was. His two options were the Gym in Veilstone and the Gym in Pastoria City. Pastoria was south of Hearthome and Lucas was already heading east, and he would have to trudge through a swamp to get there. Veilstone it is. Based on this route however, it would probably take at least a week to walk there. While taking that long would be discouraging, what was his hurry? The longer it took him to get through the Sinnoh League, the more time it would be before he would have to deal with John again. At the teen boy fumed over the thought of his older brother again, a strange, haggard-looking man approached him. At first Lucas assumed that the guy was a Trainer, but his behavior soon suggested otherwise.

"The shadows are following me," he said, his eyes darting left and right. In his hands was a large, smooth rock, "I can't take the laughing anymore. And I don't want to lose anymore socks,"

_This dude is a nutjob_, Lucas thought to himself. Worried for their Trainer, both Eevees huddled around his legs, waiting to see what would happen, "Um, are you okay?"

"Here! Take it!" the man said urgently, shoving the rock he was holding into Luca's chest. The sudden action knocked the wind out of the boy slightly but before he could regain his composure or say anything, the man ran into the bushes.

"Did I get a 'weirdo magnet' tattoo when no one was looking?" Lucas commented to his Pokemon. Both Eevee perked their ears curiously. At first Lucas was just going to toss the rock to the ground, but when he examined it he noticed there was some carving to it that looked like a face. He wasn't sure why, but he found the item intersting and stuck it into his bag.

The rest of the afternoon and evening were fairly uneventful. Lucas battled a few Trainers and worked on leveling up Donna and Hotrod, checked on the egg he received from Ashley and made camp. At night he slept soundly, but had an odd dream about the rock in his bag talking to him. The next morning he started walking again and covering a lot of ground, eventually came across a well that was next to a stream.

"Well, that's kinds stupid," Lucas remarked, "Why would you build a well when there's running water no more than two feet away," Curious, he examined the misplaced structure and noticed the stones that it was built out of where the same color and texture as the rock he received from the crazy old man. Further inspecting the well, the teen noticed what seemed to be a hole that was the same size and shape as his stone, "No, it couldn't be, could it?"

Lucas took the item from his bag and started to place it back in the hole. A strange sound that he could barely hear seemed to be coming from inside his head. The hair on the back of his neck stood straight up as he reconsidered putting the missing stone back, "Hey, you!"

The teen dropped the rock and turned around. Just a few feet behind him was a girl, "Jesus! You just about gave me a heart attack! You shouldn't sneak up on people like that!"

"Listen you! I have been camped out at this well for two straight weeks, I am not about to have some random metal-head sneak in and catch _my_ Pokemon! If you want to catch something, move on because this spot is mine!" The girl who had confronted Lucas seemed a little more than odd. She wasn't very tall but she was rail-thin with legs like a stork and a long face. Her nose was lightly large and rounded, but she wouldn't have been bad looking if her expression wasn't so sullen and her large lower lip enhanced by her dark purple lipstick. Her outfit seemed to suggest she couldn't make up her mind if she wanted to look Scene or Emo with her stripped socks, ripped skirt and heavy black eye makeup around her brown eyes, mismatched with a bright blue Sneasel tank-top over a lilac t-shirt. Her jet-black hair was impossibly teased and crowned with a large pink bow with a Pokeball in the center.

"What the hell are you talking about? What Pokemon?" Lucas snapped back now that he had regained his senses.

"Oh, don't play dumb with me. You're the fifth guy this week I've had to fight off. I'm warning you, if I have to beat you in a battle I will. So don't mess with me," the teen girl growled. Lucas still had no idea what this girl was rambling about, but he was liking her less and less with each second.

"Okay, girlie, obviously you need to switch hairsprays because the one you use now is killing too many braincells. I'm not playing dumb, in this situation I actually am dumb. I'm not trying to take anything, but if you want a battle, I'll be happy to give you one," the teen boy barked back, "Go! Sparky!"

"Go Snuggles!" the girl pulled a Pokeball from her purse and summoned out a Sneasel.

Lucas swore. A dark-type was the last thing he needed for his electric/ghost Pokemon. He would have to hope his opponent wouldn't be over-eager with dark-type moves, "Use Spark!"

"Night Slash!"

Dammit. So much for that plan. Sparky was knocked out in one hit. Lucas began to feel sorry for his happy-go-lucky little Pokemon. That had been the second time he had been instantly KO-ed in as many battles. Thankfully Sneasel was also part-ice, making Lucas' next choice Hotrod the Charmeleon. Though having a type advantage, the fire-type still had a difficult time beating his opponent.

Though her Sneasel had been defeated, the girl with the big hair didn't seem shaken, "Okay Theenie! Make Momma proud!"

The teen girl's next Pokemon was a Houndoom, a notoriously speedy and tough creature that was higher in level than any of Lucas' other monsters. Even at a disadvantage, the boy was not about the let his shrill opponent make a fool out of him. Franky was the next in battle. The round between the two was fierce but with the Gyrados not knowing any water moves, the Houndoom won. Things were going very badly for Lucas and it was his own fault. The girl might be irritating and moody, but there was no denying she was an extremely powerful Trainer. With Franky down, Lucas summoned Gizmo, his highest level Pokemon.

The girl didn't laugh at the summoned Eevee like many of his other opponents would. She considered it carefully and recalled her Houndoom. She pulled out a third Pokeball, "Go! Achilles!"

_No. F#$ing. Way._ This was the only thought that Lucas' terrified brain could squeak out. He wasn't scared for himself, though the Pokemon the girl summoned was so tall its blotted out the boy's view of the sun. All available fear was now for Gizmo, the beast's opponent, "You're kidding me. A Tyranitar? That thing is going to kill Gizmo!"

Tyranitar were massive, insanely powerful dark-and-ground Pokemon that could only be evolved at high level. He didn't pull out his Pokedex but he could guess that the girl's living tank was almost level ninety. He couldn't understand why the girl's other Pokemon were relatively low level, but this monstrosity was almost the strongest a Pokemon could get, "You know perfectly well Pokemon can't kill each other in a fight. It'd be illegal to have Pokemon Battles if they did. But if you want to forfeit to save your Pokemon, I'll let you. You won't even have to pay me a winner's fee, but you're going to have to move on from here,"

Lucas hated to lose. And he especially hated the idea of losing to this unpleasant girl. But she was showing his Pokemon mercy, and to keep fighting this futile battle for his own stubborn pride was not something he was willing to do to Gizmo. He didn't force Gizmo to fight his brother's Nidoking, and he wasn't going to force him to fight a beast belonging to a person, though immediately didn't like, also didn't know. "Okay fine, I forfeit. Though I can see how you were able to beat anyone who came by here. That Tyranitar is like bringing a nuke to a gun fight,"

"You're a good boy, Achilles," the girl said lovingly to her Pokemon before recalling it and switching back to her bad attitude towards Lucas, "Hey, I beat my opponents fair and square,"

"Legal, yes. Fair, my ass," Lucas replied as Gizmo ran back over to Donna.

"Point is I beat you. Now step off, Rooster Boy. I told you the Pokemon of the well is mine!" the girl snapped back.

"Rooster Boy?" the mohawk-bearing boy seethed, "Motley Crue called, they want their hair back! And as I told you before and for whatever reason you still don't believe me, I still don't know what the high hell you're talking about!"

The girl's dour expression changed slightly as it finally dawned on her the boy was telling her the truth, "So you really don't know, huh? All right, I'll tell you about it, but after I tell you, the Pokemon is still mine and if you try anything funny Achilles get a new chew toy, got it?" Lucas just rolled his eyes at her, "The locals around here say that this really isn't a well. Makes sense considering it's next to a river. And it makes no sense to dig a well for water when there is running water two feet away like this,"

"I got that part. I'm not stupid, you know!" Lucas snarled.

"Sure you're not," the girl said patronizingly, "So anyway, this isn't a well, it's a tomb. A cursed tomb. People around here say that weird things happen around here, especially at night. Strange shadows, creepy voices, real Amitville Horror stuff. People assume it's ghosts, but I read an article written by Professor Rowan, the leading expert of the Sinnoh Region, and he hypothesizes that it's really the ghost/dark Pokemon, Spiritomb. It's my ambition to start a dark-type gym, so I want to get every kind of dark-type I can find,"

"And so you've been camping out here for two weeks jumping out at random Trainers like some kind of demented prospector protecting a gold mine without one sign of anything being here," Lucas smirked, "And you call _me_ dumb. I would have given up probably after the first two days,"

"That's because you're a loser. Listen, before I got here everyone from the next town up all said the same thing. Not some stupid tourist story, real X-files type stuff. Almost everyone has experienced something from this 'well'. I go back to the town every now and again and for the past two weeks everyone has noticed things have gone quiet. They're more weirded out by the quiet than the funky events. That means something was here. And since I'm the only Trainer around here, and I've made sure no one else has caught it, I know the Spiritomb is still here and I'm going to catch it!"

"You sure you didn't just scare it off?"

"Screw you,"

"You're not my type,"

"The Spiritomb has been in this area for hundreds of years. It's not going to get scared off just because a Trainer like me is poking around. Something else must have done it,"

Lucas glanced back at the carved rock that was still next to the well when a thought occurred to him, "Hey, was there a creepy old man around here recently? Talking to himself, wild eyes, looks like he'd probably bury your mangled corpse in the woods somewhere?"

"Yeah, actually, about two weeks ago he came around here mumbling something about socks. He was around the well, but he wasn't a Trainer so I didn't mess with him," the girl said thoughtfully. Lucas marched back over to the well and picked up the rock again, "Hey you prick! I beat you! That means you promised you wouldn't go after the Pokemon!"

"I didn't promise jack shit to you, I said I'm move on but I didn't say when. And I certainly didn't say anything about not catching the Pokemon. I'm trying to fill in my Pokedex so I'm going to try to catch any Pokemon I get the opportunity to, especially if it's rare. And my name is Lucas. If we're going to keep yelling at each other, we might as well have proper introductions," Lucas carefully placed the missing stone back into place. At first it resisted his movements, but then smoothly slide in and clicked into place. Then nothing happened. "Well, so much for that idea. See you around, Tommy Lee. And you might want to reconsider all that hairspray you use if you train a Houndoom. Don't want any nasty accidents of setting yourself on fire,"

"You're one to talk, you look like the lovechild of a chicken, someone who plays paintball, Sid Vicious and a hooked trout. And my name is Morgan, if we're suddenly going to be civilized," the girl sneered. Instead of Lucas leaving the two began to argue and hurl insults at each other over their appearances, their Pokemon and the integrity of their mothers' morality. Busy shouting at each other, they failed to notice that the old well began to glow. From the center of the small circle of stones a purple haze began to seep out and take a loose form. It wasn't until the desperate barking of Donna and Gizmo that the two Trainers turned to see what was happening.

Realizing what they were encountering, they shouted together, "The Spiritomb!"


	18. Chapter 18 Tower of Sorrow

Chapter 18: Tower of Sorrow

"It's mine! Go Fluffykins!" Morgan shouted as she released a strong-looking Umbreon.

"Go Hotrod!" Lucas announced as he sent his own Pokemon against the Spiritomb.

For Lucas and Morgan, it was hate at first sight. After leaving Hearthome City for the next gym, Lucas had come to examine a strange well he stumbled across on his way to the next city. While noticing the well was made out of the same stone he received from a crazy old man he met along the way, Morgan, a Trainer specializing in dark-type Pokemon ambushed the teen boy, accused him of trying to steal 'her' Pokemon and challenged him to a battle over the semi-mythic creature that was supposed to live in the well. Though she forced the teen to forfeit after bringing out her titanic Tyranitar, Lucas didn't leave, and put the missing stone back into well. As the two teen continued to butt heads, the Pokemon inside, Spiritomb, seeped out of the stone structure and was ready for battle. Now both bad tempered Trainers were battling to catch it first.

"Back off Metal-head! I've been here for two weeks, I'm not leaving empty-handed!" the girl snarled, "Fluffykins! Use Shadowball!"

"Up yours, Emo-girl, Spiritomb wouldn't have even showed up if it wasn't for _my_ rock!" Lucas snapped back, "Hotrod! Use Ember!"

The battle over the ghost/dark Pokemon was vicious. The two Trainers altered between attacking the wild Spiritomb and fighting each other. A dark/ghost-type had virtually no weakness, and the Spiritomb's attacks were damaging the Charmeleon and Umbreon as badly as the two were damaging each other. Though the dark-type evolved form of Eevee was more resistant to the ghost's attacks than the fire-type's, Hotrod was tenacious, and a prideful fighter. Fluffykins got hit with a Hypnosis attack, falling to the ground asleep. Now with the advantage, Lucas grabbed an empty Pokeball from his pocket and tossed it at the wild Pokemon.

"Go Pokeball!"

"No you don't! Go Greatball!" Morgan snarled frantically.

Both Pokeballs hurtled towards the Spiritomb, and collided into each other before reaching the Pokemon. Morgan's Greatball bounced off of the Pokeball and landed uselessly on the ground, and boosted the other Pokeball closer to the ghost. The Pokemon-catching device sucked the ghost-type in and landed on the ground with a thud. It rocked violently at first, but each rock became calmer and calmer until the ball stopped moving with a definitive click. Lucas smugly strode over to the Pokeball on the ground, picked it up and spun the ball on the tip of his pointer finger, "Ah yeah, victory is mine,"

"You asshole, you absolute asshole," Lucas turned to his opponent and saw that she had her head down and her body seemed to be trembling. Much to his shock, her voice didn't sound angry or shrill, or full of the nasty attitude she had shown to him so far. Instead, she sounded stunned and almost sad, "I needed that Pokemon. I need all the dark-types I can get, I need to be the best dark-type trainer. I have to rebuild my dad's gym. I just have to. I traveled all this way. I came out here day and night, for two weeks, trying to find that Spiritomb. And you just took it away from me,"

Lucas started to feel badly. He never once stopped to think why this girl was so determined to get the Spiritomb, he was just so off-put by her personality. Most of his life, the teen boy resented people for judging him without knowing him, and now he had done the exact same thing to this girl. The more he thought about it, and the more she slouched her shoulders in defeat, the more he realized how alike the two of them were. He walked over to the girl and she threw a punch at him. Catching her wrist, he pushed the Pokeball into Morgan's hand, "Here."

"What's this for?" the dark-trainer eyed him suspiciously.

"I said I needed to catch all the Pokemon I can to complete my Pokedex. I never said anything about having to keep and raise the Pokemon," Lucas grinned.

"So, does this like make us friends now or something," Morgan huffed.

"Good god no. But you did let me forfeit instead of annihilating Gizmo with that monster of yours. So that means you can't be a total bitch," Lucas said casually, "And I could always use a rival. You know, one of those people who motivates you to keep getting better even if you don't entirely like them. I don't like to lose and one of these days I want to beat your Tyranitar,"

Morgan looked down at the Pokeball containing the Spiritomb and moved it around in her hands. She finally put the ball into her purse with her other Pokemon and stated indifferently to Lucas, "Your team is in really bad shape after our battle and the fight with Spiritomb. I can show you where the next town is so you don't get lost or anything,"

"By the way, I nicknamed that Spiritomb King Lucas. Have fun with that,"

"Jackass,"

Morgan picked up her unused Greatball and started heading down the path. Lucas whistled to his two Eevee and started following her. The path was getting a bit hillier now, and the trees thicker. The teen boy was beginning to get a little grateful to the other Trainer, he could see how it would be easy to stray off the path. With two of his Pokemon totally knocked out, and only three Pokemon that could be considered in fighting condition, he wanted to avoid trouble.

"I see you have two Eevees, are you planning to evolve one of them into an Umbreon? They're good Pokemon. Fluffykins is probably one of my best. Though all of mine are pretty great," Morgan said, trying to start some harmless small talk for the long walk. She picked up Gizmo and scratched the normal-type's head. Lucas could see that like him, Morgan was someone who got along better with Pokemon than people.

"Actually, Gizmo can't evolve," Lucas replied.

"What about the other one?"

"You mean Donna? Um, I don't know. Never thought about it, I guess," the teen boy was telling the truth. Lucas accepted that Gizmo was unable to evolve and was just fine with it. It meant no pressure on his part. But he forgot that Donna was normal, and had the inherent Eevee ability to evolve. She had the possibility to become one of seven other Pokemon through one of several ways. The decision would be difficult, "I guess for now I'll just leave her an Eevee, too. So where are you from, anyway? I get the impression you're not originally from Sinnoh,"

"Cherrygrove City, in Johto,"

"No way! Get out of here. I'm from Cherrygrove! I wonder why we've never met before,"

"I left when I was ten. I actually have more Pokemon than the ones I have with me because I went on a Journey. I was actually Champion of Johto for a little while. I don't like going back there if I don't have to. For now I'm just training and catching my dark-types,"

"Yeah, I don't blame you, Cherrygrove isn't very exciting. What was that you said earlier, about wanting to rebuild your dad's Gym? What happened to the old one? I don't remember there ever being a Pokemon Gym in Cherrygrove,"

Morgan suddenly stopped in her tracks, "We're not too far now. And if you're trying to catch some Pokemon, there are Scyther and Chansey in these grasses,"

For whatever reason Morgan clearly didn't want to talk about the Gym anymore. Lucas was not about to push her. Everyone was entitled to their secrets. The two continued to walk in silence, until the teen boy noticed the air around them becoming murkier and murkier as a thick fog set in, "Wow, this is weird. Don't you usually get fog in the early morning or at night, right? Now would be too warm for fog in the middle of the day,"

"Not if it's caused by Pokemon," Morgan stated. She stopped walking again and looked around, frowning as she observed her increasingly obscured surroundings, "Do any of your Pokemon know Defog?"

"De-what now?"

"Well, that answers my question. Shoot. It looks like we're stuck here," Morgan sighed and sat down on a fallen log.

"Why don't we just keep going? You said we're not far from town,"

"Because this fog is so thick we can barely see each other. We could literally be feet from Solaceon Town and walk right past it. We could wander around for hours and never find it," Morgan explained, "And you might want to call back Gizmo and Donna too. You don't want them to get lost either,"

Lucas followed her advice and called his two Eevee back, but didn't join the girl on the log, "Yeah, but if a Pokemon caused the fog, that means that this could hang around for days. That's as bad as being lost. If we follow the path we should be okay, shouldn't we?"

"Crap, you have a point. Unless the Pokemon causing it goes away, gets caught or knocked out, this fog isn't going anywhere. We might have to risk it after all," Morgan got back up and held out her hand, "We probably don't want to lose each other either. You still need to go to a Pokemon Center,"

"Awww, are you getting sweet on me?" Lucas joked as he reached out for the girl's fingers, "Ouch!"

Morgan pinched the webbing between his thumb and forefinger with her nails.

The two Trainers walked slowly through the mists, taking each step carefully to avoid tripping or straying off the path. The hours crawled by but the fog didn't clear up at all. Finally, through the identical-looking scenery, a tall building came into view.

"This isn't Solaceon Town, is it?" Lucas asked cautiously as he looked at the ominous-looking building.

"No, it isn't." Morgan said quietly, "This is the Lost Tower. It's a Pokemon graveyard,"

Lucas knew about Pokemon graveyards. They were reverent places where the bones and ashes of loyal Pokemon would be laid to rest. They were often visited by the former owners of the deceased, and haunted by ghost-types drawn to the somber setting. He remembered some controversy in Lavender Town in Kanto when the Lavender Tower was torn down in favor of a radio tower.

"I had hoped I could avoid ever running into this place," Morgan seemed to get more sullen by the second. A feat Lucas had thought impossible.

"I know this isn't a happy place but don't you think it would still be a good idea to go inside? There will be Trainers in there, and maybe one of them has a Pokemon that knows that Defog move you mentioned and clear up the roads. Your team is probably as exhausted as mine," Morgan made no move to argue and so the two Trainers went inside. The building had an eerie feeling to it, a feeling intensified as no one was stationed at the front desk. The sound of their shoes made soft tapping on the tile lined floor and the mist from the outside seemed to hang in the air of the building as well. The first floor seemingly abandoned, the two went up a flight of stairs.

Pokemon could not be killed in battle, where even the strongest dragon-type could not cause the death of a weakest bug-type with its attacks. They were resilient, fast-healing creatures, but Pokemon were still able to die. Accidents, old age, disease and the abuse of human beings, all could cause the creatures' deaths. The second floor of the Lost Tower was where the actual creatures were buried. Tombstones on the floor and engraved tiles on the walls bore the names of loyal creatures who had passed this world. Some where simple tiles with just the name and age of the Pokemon. Others had carved pictures of what the Pokemon actually were, and bore epitaphs such as 'Diamond, the best Onix that ever lived' and 'Houdini, my partner until the end.' Small piles of berries and other items were laid with reverence all over the floor. Without even realizing it, Lucas was clutching Gizmo's Pokeball around his neck. This place was a monument to the finality of death. While many Pokemon had lives longer than humans could ever dream of, others were destined to have their trainers outlive them. The fact that Gizmo or Franky or Hotrod may not be around one day crystallized the love and concern the boy had for his creatures.

Since coming to this floor, neither Trainer had said anything and Lucas looked around to see if the girl was still even there. Morgan was standing against the wall tracing her finger gently against the letters on a tile, "My father's Pokemon are buried in a place like this," She spoke so softly the young man wasn't even sure if the words were directed at him.

Though her voice was steady, two black lines flowed down her face as her tears liquified the heavy makeup around her eyes. Lucas watched the girl silently, remembering something she said during her outburst over the Spiritomb, and then again while walking towards Solaceon Town and a realization dawned in his mind. When he saw she make no action to continue their search, he finally confronted her about it, "What happened to your dad?"

The question seemed to shock Morgan out of her state and locked eyes with her rival. Though her first emotion was rage, her eyes melted into resignation, realizing dropping or dodging the subject would do neither of them anymore good. She turned her back to the boy and began her story, "It was thirteen years ago. I was only a little kid then and I still remember everything. It was back when Team Rocket was at the height of its power, when they had their tentacles even in the Pokemon League. My dad was the Gym Leader of Cherrygrove City and a vocal opponent. One day my mom asked me 'to bring Daddy lunch' and when I approached the Gym...I was so close to the door I was already reaching out my hand to turn grab the door handle. That's when everything went white,"

"What are you talking about?"

"The Gym exploded. The authorities said it was just an accident, a gas leak that combusted when my dad's Houndoom used a fire attack. My Hounddoom Theenie was one of Trigger's—my dad's Pokemon's—babies. The first Pokemon I ever got. My dad, his team, the poor kid he was fighting against, all killed instantly. The only survivor was Achilles, my Tyranitar. I know it wasn't an accident, my dad's Gym didn't even have a gas line. Most Gyms don't. They murdered him. I know they did. Only a few days before some Team Rocket Grunts were spotted in the city. I know they're responsible, even if I can't ever prove it," Morgan walked away from the wall she had been facing and set her hand on a headstone.

Lucas had always heard stories about the horrific things Team Rocket had done, but it was surreal to actually be speaking with someone directly affected by the group. Morgan's story reminded the teen about his confrontation with Team Cosmic in the mountain. He wouldn't let them do to anyone else what Team Rocket had done to Morgan. The girl may not be the most pleasant of people, but to lose someone that important was unimaginable. As much as Lucas hated his brother and fought with his parents, he would never, ever want to lose them, "I'm...I'm really sorry Morgan,"

Morgan steadied her emotions and wiped her eyes with a tissue from her purse, smudging her already ruined makeup. It didn't seem to bother her, "The League shut down the Gym after it happened, but I'm going to rebuild it. I'm going to be the greatest dark-type trainer that ever lived. I'll avenge my father's honor with his final Pokemon and a team of my own. I try to be strong, but places like this, well, it just reminds me that he's really gone. I'm okay now, so let's keep looking,"

The second floor was as abandoned as the first and exploring the third and fourth floors was just as futile. Outside of a few Zubat, the building was totally devoid of life. Both Trainers started to get suspicious.

"Something isn't kosher here. There isn't a single person in this tower. No mourners, no spiritualists, no Trainers. The fog wouldn't keep everyone away, and if the tower were closed for any reason, we wouldn't have been able to come in," Morgan observed cautiously.

"Yeah, and haven't you noticed the fog inside is getting thicker, too? That's the third tombstone I've knocked my shin into," Lucas agreed, rubbing his leg gingerly. The two Trainers exchanged looks and nodded, pulling out their Pokeballs, ready for an ambush.

The teens proceeded up to the next two floors, with the fog getting denser and eerier. Finally on the topmost floor of the Lost Tower the fog lifted. The sight presented before them knocked the teens back in fearful surprise. There were dozens of people, all kneeling on the floor with their heads bowed and their hands placed on their thighs. At the very back of the great, clear hall was a woman dressed as a medium seated at the foot of the shrine. It was this woman's appearance that was more unnerving than the unmoving, unresponsive crowd lined in neat rows on the ground. Like the others, she was kneeling, her hands rested on her thighs. Unlike the others, however, her head was straight up, and her eyes were glowing red.

"Morgan, I don't like the looks of this..." Lucas whispered. That same prickling at the back of his neck informing him fear would be an appropriate emotion for the situation returned. The teen girl, however, did not reply, "Morgan?"

The pierced boy turned around to find Morgan unresponsive, though standing, her head bowed like the other people in the room. Lucas furiously shook her shoulders, and flicked her forehead with his fingers, but she would not react. The young man spun back to the seated medium who was smiling sinisterly at him. Whatever was going on, this lady was at the source. A strange grogginess seemed to invade his mind, a sense of exhaustion seemingly counter to his adrenaline-fueled state. Lucas resisted as best as he could, pulling away from the tendrils of sleepiness that seemed to grasp at him, and broke out in a run towards the woman at the shrine. A strange idea sparked to his brain and he pulled the Pokeball from his neck.

"Gizmo! Shadowball!" The Eevee reemerged from its portable storage and his fluffy coat puffed up defensively, clearly troubled by the feeling in the air. The Pokemon gave a confused look to his Trainer, never before ordered to attack a human being. Lucas' gaze told the creature his owner was serious, and summoned a ball of black energy from his head and hurtled it towards the medium. The lady was knocked back but the teen could tell he accomplished what he was attempting. A black, smoke-like substance flowed out of the woman's body and took a solid shape.

Lucas wasn't sure what it was called, but he knew this thing was a Pokemon. The boy pulled out his Pokedex to learn the creature was called Dusknoir, and the ghost-type was at a very high level. Angered, and clearly full of energy from the people of the room, the beast attacked.

"Gizmo! Shadowball again!" Lucas initiated the strategy he used against the Gym Leader Fantina, hoping the Ghost Pokemon only knew ghost-type moves. The Eevee's Shadowball attack did damage his opponent, but the Dusknoir fought back with a Thunderpunch. Lucas desperately commanded Gizmo to attack again, trying to think of a strategy out of this dangerous situation. Calling out Hotrod wouldn't do any good, the Charmeleon was exhausted from the earlier fight even if it weren't knocked out, and if Gizmo lost his only other Pokemon left would be his other Eevee, Donna, a Pokemon that knew no moves that could touch the ghost. Without any Pokemon the teen would be helpless, and the Dusknoir would do to him what it already had done to the visitors of the Lost Tower. The Eevee's attacks hit their mark and did tremendous damage, but the ghost's attacks kept hitting worse. An unlucky critical hit sent Gizmo skidding across the ground and crashing into the shrine's stairs, completely knocking the Pokemon out. Before Lucas could react, a Pokeball on his belt glowed and popped open without being touched.

"Viii! Viiiii!" Donna shrieked as she materialized and ran over to Gizmo. She nudged his body, trying to rouse the unconscious Eevee. When her tender attempts failed, she turned to the Dusknoir and bared her teeth, snarling viciously with her ears slicked back. Suddenly the Pokemon began to glow, and the small normal-type started to get larger. As the light vanished a snarling Espeon had taken her place. Though the ghost-type was taken aback by the transformation, it immediately resumed its attacks. Donna acted without Lucas' control, and though it had a weakness to ghost-type attacks, the issue was non-existent. She managed to avoid all of her opponents attacks, dodging nimbly anything the ghost threw at her. Over and over she used her Psybeam attack, finishing off what the male Eevee had started. Before Lucas even had a chance to catch the rogue Pokemon, the Espeon knocked it out, the Dusknoir's unconscious body sinking into the floor and disappearing.


	19. Chapter 19 Lesson in Love

Chapter 19: A Lesson in Love

With the Dusknoir defeated, the catatonic people gathered at the top of the Lost Tower slowly stirred to life. The dozens of people all looked at each other in surprise, wondering how they had gotten to the top floor of the tower when most had planned to pay their respects to their deceased Pokemon. Morgan rubbed a spot on her forehead that had stung as though someone had flicked it and the Medium at the base of the altar clutched her head and chest nervously. Lucas had explained what had happened and the grateful Medium gave the Trainer a Cleanse Tag to keep him safe on the way back down the tower. The people slowly shuffled back down the stairs and back to the tombs and headstones of their beloved creatures, thanking the two Trainers for their help.

The fog was gone too now, clearly also caused by the immensely powerful Ghost-type, and it only took a few minutes to finally arrive in the small burgh of Solaceon Town. The small city and its Pokemon Center were a welcome sight to the exhausted teens, both desperately needing rest and a chance to heal their weakened teams. With their Pokemon fully healed and a meal in their bellies, Morgan showed Lucas around the town.

Solaceon Town was less a city and more a straight road with buildings on either side. The residents were mostly farmers and Pokemon Breeders, who used to Morgan and her outlandish appearance barely paid attention to her, though Lucas got more than a few suspicious glances. Lucas' natural reaction was to grimace from the judgment, but Morgan ignored his sullen attitude as she gave the short tour, "There isn't much in Solaceon Town itself, north of here the road splits and you can head to the next town but due west is a really cool set of ruins. I haven't explored them yet but I plan to now that I have the Spiritomb. The one really important thing here is the Daycare. It's a good place to have Pokemon raised if you don't have the chance to do it yourself,"

"I think I might put Gizmo and Donna in here for a little while, they've been working really hard, I'm sure they wouldn't mind a short rest here without having to fight all the time," Lucas stopped in front of the cheerfully painted building and pulled out the Pokeballs containing Donna and Gizmo. The two hadn't seen each other since the battle in the tower, and he thought it would be good for them to be alone for a little while. The inside of the Daycare was just as cheery and upbeat as the outside and an old couple was smiling behind the counter.

"Good afternoon and welcome to the Daycare Center. Would you like us to take care of some of your Pokemon?" the old lady asked politely.

Lucas presented the two Pokeballs on the counter, "Yeah, I'd like you to take care of my two Eevee, sorry, I mean my Eevee and my Espeon. I keep forgetting Donna evolved,"

"We'll take good care of your Pokemon, young man. You can pick them up anytime and we'll raise them as long as you're away," the old man added.

"Oh, I'm not going to be gone for too long, probably will be back for them tomorrow. I'm just going back to the Center for the rest of the day, now," Lucas explained. He turned to Morgan and asked, "You coming with?"

"Actually I was planning on going out to the Ruins for a bit. You can always join me if you feel like it," Morgan shrugged.

"Aww, if I didn't know better, I'd say you were actually starting to like me," Lucas grinned.

"Hey, I'm not a total ungrateful bitch. You did save my butt back at that tower, and you didn't make fun of me for crying, either. So you're not a total jackass yourself. If you don't wanna come, don't," Morgan snapped.

"You need to work your people skills. Though I'm probably the last person to help you with that," Lucas joked, "But yeah, the ruins sound fun. Tell Gizmo and Donna 'bye' for me," The two Trainers left the Daycare bickering and the elderly couple went to the back to let the Pokemon left in their care out to run around.

Gizmo and Donna were released from their balls into a small courtyard with a small pond, some playground equipment, trees and shrubs and lots of little places to hide and nest. Gizmo stretched himself out and scratched his ear, still groggy from the procedure that revives fainted Pokemon. Donna gave the male Pokemon a happy chirp, but when the Eevee finally turned to her, his look towards her was one of shock and dismay. To the couple that ran the Daycare, the squeaks and chirps that the two Pokemon made were just the normal noises that the loyal creatures made all the time, oblivious to the real meaning the sounds meant.

"_Gizmo! I'm so glad you're okay. I was so worried in the tower, the way that Dusknoir made you fly, I knew I would make him pay!_" Donna chirped in a series of happy sounds, her tail wagging and ears flicking.

"_Donna, you, you evolved_," Gizmo replied, his sounds much more restrained and his ears more drooped.

"_Oh, that's right, I did. It was the only way I could save you. Lucas was so nice to give us some time together. I missed you so much and was scared, even if it was only a short time,_" the purple Pokemon tried to approach the Eevee to give him a loving nuzzle, but the small brown normal-type flinched and backed away.

"_I-I'm going to go wait for Lucas. I have to make sure he comes back for us. My last Trainer abandoned me_," without so much as a pause, Gizmo ran away and climbed up a stubby pine tree to sit on a small, short branch, turning away from the Espeon.

Donna cocked her head, puzzled by her boyfriend's odd behavior, "_Gizmo, is there something wrong? I mean, you know Lucas isn't going to abandon us, right?_"

"_Better safe than sorry!_" Gizmo's high squeak seemed to hit the wrong note with Donna, something felt very wrong.

"_Then can I join you? We can wait together. Two sets of eyes are better than one. And I have psychic-type powers now, I might even be able to sense him before he actually is in line of sight_,"

"_No, I don't think that would be a good idea. This branch is too small for both of us, our weight together might break it_,"

"_Then just move to a different branch, one that will fit both of us,_"

"_This one has the best sight_,"

Donna flicked her ears irritably, she knew what Gizmo had said was untrue. There were several branches above him that were bigger and he could see further, and a rock close to the fence would provide a clearer view than the more grassy location the Eevee had chosen, "_What's wrong, Gizmo? And don't say Lucas, because the both of us know that he would never abandon us. He's a good human, better than most. Otherwise Bill wouldn't have given me to him,_"

"_Nothing's wrong_," With that statement, Donna lost her patience. She leapt up the tree, bouncing off of the few branches before snatching Gizmo by his mane and jumping to the ground. She pinned the Eevee on his back and forced him to face her stare.

Gizmo looked the Espeon up and an down, taking in the fact that she was now almost three times bigger than he was, and looked away, clenching his eyelids so he wouldn't see her. The normal-type's reaction to her caused Donna's ears and shoulders to droop in rejection. She unpinned him and walked a few steps away. It was clear now, he was ashamed of her. He no longer loved her now that she had evolved, "_I-I'm sorry you hate me like this. I'm sorry you think I'm ugly or too big or whatever it is about me now that makes you not love me anymore. I only did it to save you. I only wanted to help,_"

The Eevee finally opened his eyes, sat up and looked at her again, his eyes weren't full of revulsion, but rather anguish, "_You are beautiful. Always were, always will be. You were the most beautiful Eevee, and now you're the most beautiful Espeon. And smart, and fun to play with and strong in heart and body. The problem isn't you, it's me,_"

"_That's a thing humans say to each other when they don't love each anymore. Even other humans don't believe it,_" Donna huffed, her tail twitching irritably.

"_The problem isn't that you're an Espeon, the problem is I'm an Eevee. I will always be an Eevee. I can't ever be anything else. I'll never become an Umbreon or Flareon or anything, no matter how much I would want to. That's why my last Trainer abandoned me, because I was useless. Lucas loves me and he is a good human. But he's a human that wants to become the greatest Trainer in all the regions so he can beat his brother. Sooner or later he's going to need a stronger Pokemon with better moves and a better type so he can win. When that time comes and he puts me in a PC box, I won't be mad or sad, because I'll still have a home and know that he loves me. But I'll always look like I'm your cub, I'll never be that strong, and you deserve something more than that._" Gizmo explained sadly.

Donna shook her head fiercely and once again approached the Eevee so their noses almost touched, "_I know you can't evolve, and I don't care. I always knew about this, don't you remember? I heard Lucas explain how he found you to Bill. I love you, Gizmo, and I always will. And you're aren't useless, you never were. Lucas keeps using you because you're a strong Pokemon. Whatever happens in the future, never forget that, even if we do end up in the PC. Lucas is a special human for the way he treats us, and you're a special Pokemon._"

"_So you aren't ashamed of me? Even if I am a third of your size?_" Gizmo paced slightly, still not sure what to feel about the situation

"_I'm ashamed of the way you treated me earlier, but not of you in general_," The Espeon sat down, chirped and wagged her tail cheerfully.

Gizmo studied her again and let out an equally happy chirp, "_I love you Donna,_"

"_I love you Gizmo,_"

The next day Lucas and Morgan returned, slightly bruised and laughing like idiots as they walked through the Daycare doors. They swore they would never repeat what had happened at the Solaceon Ruins to any living person, but every time the teen boy said the word 'popcorn,' the two would collapse into another fit of hysterical laughter. Lucas wiped the tears from his eyes and approached the counter to receive his Pokemon. The old lady and man greeting him politely.

"So did they behave themselves?" Lucas asked as the woman added up his bill for their services.

"They were good, but I think there is something you should see." The old man lead the two Trainers to the back where Gizmo and Donna were curled together sleeping on a cushion, a pile of six eggs on their side. The Eevee slowly opened up an eye to see Lucas had returned and stretched his body without moving from Donna's side. The old man motioned to the pile of eggs, "We have no idea where they all came from,"

"Oh, I have a pretty good idea how they got here," Lucas grinned mischievously. He walked over to his Pokemon and knelt down to Gizmo's level so he could scratch his Pokemon's cheeks, "Gizmo, you animal. I wasn't even gone a whole day! And congratulations to you too, Momma Donna, I'll get on your matching World's Greatest Mom and Dad coffee mugs as soon as well leave,"

"Wow, you were smart to breed them, now you'll have a small army of Eevee you'll be able to evolve into all the types and really take a chunk of you're Pokedex," Morgan commented.

"Nah, that wasn't my intention. I just knew that these two needed some time to get reacquainted. I know if someone I was in love with changed that much, I'd like some time to adjust, too. I just didn't figure they'd get reacquainted this much. And it doesn't matter if they evolve or not. If they want to stay Eevee like their dad, or evolve like their mom, it's really up to them. Training Pokemon is more than stats and being the best. You really aren't enjoying it unless you genuinely love Pokemon," Lucas returned Donna and Eevee to their Pokeballs and scooped up the eggs, "Probably sounds corny, but I don't care, screw it."

"No, no, I totally agree with you," Morgan shook her head as they started walking back out the Daycare, "But you're a weird guy Lucas. On one hand you can be a total and complete prick, and on the other you do all these really sweet things. I don't get you,"

"No one really does. Sorry if my angsty charms entice you, but you're not my type," Lucas sighed.

"You're not my type, either, dumbass!" Morgan snapped.

As the two stepped out the door Lucas turned to the snide girl with the big hair, "Hey, Morgan,"

"What?"

"Popcorn," and with that the two Trainers began wheezing with laughter.


	20. Chapter 20 Back on the Road

Chapter 20: Back on the Road

After a few days of rest and recovery, it was time to leave Solaceon Town. Though the two never discussed it, Morgan and Lucas ended up traveling together as they gathered their supplies and headed north. As the two headed further and further away from the foothills of Mt. Coronet, the landscape changed from hilly forests with the occasional clearing into the flat plains and tall grasses of Route 210. Morgan explained that the grasses were good places to catch Pokemon, and that Scyther and Chansey were more common here than the south of Solaceon where they had come from, but warned him that it was easy to get lost. As they explored the route and Lucas collected some more Pokemon, the two discussed everyday things such as music and food and how annoying people could be. While Morgan could be insufferable with her condescending insults and abrasive personality, Lucas was enjoying her company.

The teen boy was too distracted by his attraction to Ashley to actually enjoy just traveling with her, but with Morgan it was entirely different. As much as he would have rather denied it, he did sort of like her and having a being to talk to that could actually answer back was nice. Lucas knew that many Trainers did travel in groups on their journeys for safety and company, something he never even thought about when he stormed out of his brother's house that now felt forever ago. For the first time since he left his gang in Cherrygrove, the pierced teen felt like he really had a friend again. He missed that more than he even realized. Mildly homesick, he asked Morgan to tell him more about the experiences she had of the hometown they both shared. The two didn't even realize how far they had traveled during their conversation.

As the afternoon passed, the travelers came across a cafe, that according to the Pokevice, would be the last place to stop for a very long time. The place was clearly very popular, as Morgan and Lucas were hardly the only Trainers there. Though the place was crowded, the decided to stop in for a short break and some hot food before the long journey to the next patch of civilization. The waitress behind the counter was swamped by questions and demands left and right, but still managed to take their order and warn the two that Trainers challenged each other inside the restaurant and to be ready to fight.

Lucas let out Gizmo as he and Morgan grabbed one of the few remaining tables in the bustling establishment, "I really hope I don't get challenged in here, I wouldn't mind the extra dough but I really don't feel like battling today. It's too nice out. One of those days where you just want to nap on the roof or something,"

"I guess. You're heading to Veilstone, aren't you? To challenge the gym?" Morgan asked. The white noise of the conversations at the other tables forced the two to raise their voices to hear each other. Gizmo looked around at the other Trainers, and some nerdy-looking boys who sat at the back excitedly pointed out the Eevee and seemed to start talking about it.

"Well, yeah," Lucas replied. He was confused by the obvious question. She knew he was doing the Gym Challenge in Sinnoh.

"Just making sure. Then that means after lunch it will be time to say goodbye,"

"What?" Lucas was taken aback by Morgan's announcement. The waitress rushed by and dropped their plates off with a smile before moving on to the next table. The food was piping hot and smelled pleasantly of sizzling meat and the peanut oil used to fry just about everything the menu offered.

"I'm not headed towards Veilstone, I'm going to Celestic Town. Route 210 splits off into a fork just past this cafe. You go east to get to Veilstone City, west for Celestic," Morgan explained as she prodded her soup with a spoon before picking up her sandwich. It was turkey on rye, but the dark-type trainer grimaced as she noticed they had put mayo on the bread despite asking for a mayo-free version.

"What's in Celestic?" The nerdy boys from the back passed by the table as they went to pay their bill, they still seemed curious about Gizmo, though they didn't dare talk to the tough-looking teen that owned them. Gizmo watched them lazily as they finally left the restaurant, only to be passed by new patrons coming in for their own meals.

"It's a very old city, supposedly home to a lot of ancient supernatural forces. I plan on visiting so I can see it for myself, as well as talk to someone there," Morgan explained dryly as she began scrapping the egg-based condiment off of her sandwich with a knife. Satisfied the offensive ingredient was gone, she finally started eating her meal.

"Well, you've got your plans, and I've got mine, I suppose," Lucas shrugged before digging into the burger set in front of him. In truth he was quite disappointed. He had hoped he'd be able to travel with Morgan for a little while longer, if only so he wouldn't have to be alone again. Though honestly he was sure he'd even miss her bad attitude and awful hair.

They ate the rest of their meal in silence, the noise and the atmosphere of the hectic cafe replacing any further discussion and were undisturbed as they paid their bill and left together. The bell on the door rang as they opened and closed it behind them, the two Trainers faced each other wordlessly, wondering which of the two would say something first. More Trainers were coming to eat, but the stream was not as steady as the lunch rush died down. The sun was no longer at its zenith, and would begin its slow march towards evening. Not liking to be in yet another awkward moment with a person, Lucas broke the stalemate, "So I guess this is goodbye,"

"I guess so," Morgan sighed. It seemed as though she was upset about their parting as he was. It was unlikely the two would ever admit to each other that they were friends, but perhaps the fact that they didn't have to declare it was what made them work so well, "It was nice knowing you, even if you could be a jerk that looks like he got hit by shrapnel. Good luck becoming the Champion,"

"And good luck opening your dark-type Gym. When you get it, I'll come challenge you for a badge,"

"Just don't expect to win. Even without Achilles I can still kick your ass."

"Not likely. I'll be able to blast your Gym with just one Pokemon, you'll see,"

"Dream on,"

"Make sure to tell everyone where you got King Lucas,"

"Ass," And with this final exchange of insults and bickering, the two teen Trainers turned their backs to each other, she facing the west while Lucas turned east, and walked away from each other, never knowing if the two would meet again. Though it was not a long or emotional parting, for them, it worked.

It felt eerily quiet to be alone again, but it allowed the teen boy be with his thoughts again. It didn't take long for Route 210 to turn to Route 215 nor for Lucas' melancholy day with its lazy weather to turn entirely miserable. It was true that Lucas hated a lot of things, and it would take less time to list the things the teen liked, but his top three hatreds never changed. Number three was having his hands restrained, be it handcuffs, rope or being pinned down in a fight, but angling for number one was a statistical dead-heat between his brother John, and rain. Lucas hated the rain with a passion: it made him cold to the bone, ruined his hair, messed up his clothes and made him feel like he could never get dry again. He had no issue with water in general, beaches and pools were something he often frequented, but as soon as it came from a cloud instead of the ground, Lucas immediately got into one of his worst moods. And seemingly as soon as he stepped foot onto Route 215, the skies opened up and poured down on him.

The Trainer sent Gizmo back into his Pokeball as he let out a chain of NC-17 swears as riffled through his duffel bag for something that would protect him from the irritating droplets that hit his face in such a way that he ended up blinking twice as normal. Lucas didn't own a jacket or a poncho. He didn't find the necessity as he made it a point to never, ever go outside when it rained. Even his parents gave into this demand, as his cat-like dislike of the stuff made him even more difficult to deal with than usual. But now, the grumbling young man wished he owned even a sheet of plastic to drape over himself in this unpleasant weather. He started trudging forward, and it didn't take long for nature's shower to wash the gel out of his hair and turn his mohawk into a pulpy mess of sopping strands that got in his face and made cold water run down his neck. It was a short time as well for his intimidating looking boots to be flooded with the puddles of mud and squishy grass to turn is socks to a course mush that made a squealing sound with each step and rub against his damp skin. His skin-tight turtleneck clung parasitically to his skin, hooking onto the normally invisible peach fuzz called his chest hair, making if feel like he could count the hairs and itched like crazy.

His mind was no longer on missing Morgan, or being alone, or the stock of his like that he liked to reevaluate on a regular basis, now his focus was entirely on getting out of this weather as quickly as humanly possible. Whether he would reach Veilstone or simply someone's house didn't particularly matter to him, all he hoped for was a space heater and a stack of towels at least as tall as he was. The rain had an additional side effect besides turning Lucas into a human sponge, it also made it incredibly difficult to see. The young man shuffled his feet as quickly as he could, feeling in front of him with his arms as he sought to avoid trees and the large boulders that seemed to litter the mini-swamp he was now traveling. He took a step and slipped into a puddle, dragging himself out of it only to fall into a deeper, muddier hole. Lucas pulled himself up and did his best to clean himself off, but he knew only a proper shower would get rid of the squishy, gritty muck that made itself inside his belly button and other places that were equally unpleasant. Thinking he was finally free of his predicament, Lucas reached his arms out again to avoid obstacles, and system that only worked if the threats were waist-high or taller. Not more than a few more steps from the mud pit, Lucas' boot slide against the edge of a small cliff, sending the Trainer rolling down a small hill.

When he finally came to a stop, he slammed into a soft dirt embankment. He did his best to pull his wet, bruised carcass into a sitting position and put his arms on his knees so he could rest his head and not having the pouring rain continuously splash his face. Lucas let out a sound somewhere between a sigh, a groan and a scream to express his misery. For the first time since the beginning of his journey, the teen had seriously considered quitting. He was not an outdoors man. Yet for a dream he long ago he gave up he was now knee-deep in the middle of weather that he hated so much, it threatened to surpass his fury for his older, cocky brother. What was he doing out here? John may have been a completely unlikable human being, but he had a TV, food in the fridge and a roof that kept rain away from him like god intended. Would that really have been so bad?

As Lucas got further and further into his cycle of self-pity and disgruntled dampness, he heard a funny little sound just beyond where he was sitting. He forced himself from his slump into a crouch and peered around the corner of the embankment he crashed into. Two little Marill, water-type mice with round bobs on their tails, were jumping and splashing in the puddle, delighting in the weather that Lucas loathed. He watched them playing and singing their calls happily, and found himself smiling. Despite the fact that he hated rain so much he was honestly considering crawling back to John, he was grinning like an idiot as he watched these two happy creatures. And his smile turned into laughter. The sudden human sound startled the two wild Pokemon and they ran into the bushes, but Lucas' laughter only got louder and more maniacal.

Was he serious? Was he that big a pussy that he would quit the one thing he truly loved and go back to the one thing he truly hated because a little water fell from the sky? Lucas loved Pokemon, and he was on this journey not just to prove something to his brother or his parents, but because _he_ wanted to be the Champion for himself. He wanted to catch all the Pokemon he could and see what the world had to offer. And sometimes the world offered monsoon rains and soaking wet underwear. Lucas finally stopped laughing and pushed his collapsed mohawk out of his eyes again to turn back to the embankment and grab his bag.

As he reached for it, it shook slightly. Something Lucas found very odd. His Pokeballs were still on his belt, and the bag was unopened, so a wild Pokemon was unlikely to be rummaging through it when he back was turned. Slowly he undid the ties and carefully searched through it, making sure to let in as little water as possible in the only waterproof thing he owned. Finally, he pulled out the Pokemon Egg he received from Ashley, it had a crack in it. His heart rose to his throat as he realized that when he fell down the hill his ungraceful body landed directly on top of the duffel bag and slammed it. Horror filled his mind as Lucas clutched the egg closer to his body, thoughts racing as he figured out what to do. _Where was the nearest Pokemon Center? Could Pokemon Centers even do anything for eggs? What do I do? I can't let it die! I promised Ashley I'd take care of it!_ Lucas found himself on the edge of sobbing as the crack in the egg expanded and the item shuddered violently, as though the unfortunate creature inside was on its last spark of life.

The cracking and shuddering intensified until the shell completely fell away and disappeared into the gooey mud at Lucas' feet. The small Pokemon inside had its eyes closed and took a slow breath, before popping its eyes open and chirped, "Bun! Bun!"

Lucas felt a wave of relief relax his body. The small Buneary looked completely unharmed. He hadn't injured it, it was ready to hatch anyway. The tiny normal-type cocked its head and sniffed Lucas and looked in awe at the new world around it, flinching slightly as small drops of rain hit its face. The Pokedex revealed this new Pokemon to be a female, and remembering Ashley's Lopunny Luna, the mother of this new creature, Lucas immediately thought of a name, "Welcome to the world, Stella,"

He quickly got a Pokeball to place the newborn away from the rain and remembered his promise to Ashley. He would raise this Pokemon with love and care. And though he never said anything to her, he now vowed to meet Ashley again. And he'd meet Morgan, too, with her Gym and kick her ass. That way whenever the two would meet he could lord it over her. He'd keep going. He'd make friends both human and Pokemon and achieve any goal he set out for himself. Now was the time to get back on the path and head for the next town, after all, he had a Gym badge to win.


	21. Chapter 21 Galactic, Inc

Chapter 21: Galactic Power, Inc.

It was mid-morning when the rain finally stopped. Lucas had spent the night in a small cave that kept him mostly water-free, but when he woke up his fingers and toes were still wrinkled and numb with cold. He was suddenly acutely aware of human anatomy as he could feel each and every one of his two-hundred and six bones individually throb with a dull ache. He pulled himself out of his small shelter and carefully stretched out his limbs and pumped his fingers in tight fists to force blood and warmth back into them. He looked around to see that the rain had left the trees and other foliage green and bright but the teen boy still couldn't shake the feeling of being a drowned rat. He proceeded to peel off the sopping wet clothing that was stubbornly sticking to his body. The young man looked around to make sure there was no one coming as he stripped naked, though at this point he little cared if he was caught, and rummaged through his bag for his towel and dry clothes. The teen rang out the soaked garments and stuffed them into a plastic bag, trying to avoid dripping mud onto any of his other property as he shoved the mess back into his duffel. He put on a pair of khaki shorts and a white t-shirt with the black silk-screened logo of a rock band he liked with its requisite skulls and flying bats. It was one of the few shirts he had not removed the sleeves from, a choice he was now grateful for making.

Lucas strapped back on his belt with his Pokeballs and put Gizmo's Pokeball necklace back around his neck, envious his no-doubt perfectly dry and warm team in their water-proof traveling storage were faring much better than he was. He fiddled with his limp mohawk, as he began once again walking to his next destination, but chose to leave his hair alone. It needed to be re-dyed soon anyway and it was a moot point to shellac it back into place when his first stop in Veilstone City would be the Pokemon Center and its promised amenities of a hot shower and washing machine. As the skyline of the next town became visible his pace quickened and there was more spring in his step, the promise of warm, dry shelter calling to him like a siren's song.

In the midst of daydreams of hot water and a dry bed Lucas almost failed to notice what was around him, but as his brain finally registered his surroundings and who was gathered a short distance in front of him, he stopped dead in his tracks. The uniforms, even with covered with damp, clear ponchos and fitted plastic caps were immediately recognizable. It was Team Cosmic. And discussing a map and file of paperwork with an underling was Major Mathias. Quickly, Lucas ducked behind a tree hoping for the element of surprise, but a startled Staravia darting from a tree blew his cover. The Major immediately noticed the disturbance, and motioned for two of his grunts to go investigate.

Unlike the other grunts from Mt. Coronet, these two minions were built like brick walls, and had no trouble dragging Lucas in front of their leader. Even with their steel wire muscles Lucas still managed to rip his arm from one of the two's grip and clock the other in the sciatic nerve of the thigh, sending him buckling. The downed man's companion balled up his fist to retaliate for his friend's pain, but Major Mathias lifted up his hand in warning to leave the boy untouched. The grunt stepped back submissively and the older man immediately turned his attention to the teenaged Trainer, "Well if it isn't my old friend Lucas, no doubt coming to Veilstone to get his precious little badge from the precious Pokemon League Gym. I had hoped I'd run into you again,"

"Yeah, I bet. I have some ideas of what you'd try to do if you got a hold me, Captain Bad Touch," Lucas blushed at the memory of Mathias' offer in Mt. Coronet.

"That's _Major_ Bad Touch if you don't mind," the commander of Team Cosmic replied drolly.

"So you came here to steal more people's Pokemon? Think you can swipe the Gym Leader's Pokemon or something?" Lucas snarled, eying the dozen or so grunts Mathias had gathered.

"Mere theft is not our target for this operation. Our interests are actually recruitment. There is someone here that our leader would very much like to join us. A man called Saturn, a former commander of the disbanded Team Galactic," The Major explained, "Of course, he's no where near as good looking as you, so if you ever change your mind about joining you'll always have a high position in my ranks,"

The pierced boy grimaced. _Not even five minutes and he's already propositioning me_, "So why are you pulling a James Bond and telling me your plan? You know I'm going to get away, and as soon as I do I'm heading straight for the police,"

"Go ahead," Mathias flashed his snake-like smile sending a shudder down Lucas' spine. He reached into his overcoat and pulled out a folded piece of paper. He unfolded it leisurely and began reading its contents, "Vandalism, forty hours community service. Harassment and Loitering, thirty hours of community service. Aggravated assault, one month incarceration at a youth detention facility. Vandalism, fifty hours community service and a very large fine. Aggravated Assault, three months incarceration, two-hundred and fifty hours community service and a fine and another Aggravated Assault case pending. My, my, you have been a naughty boy."

Lucas ground his teeth as his old crimes were once again shoved in face, "So what's your point?"

"My point, my young friend, is that you can go to the police all you like. And we at Team Cosmic can very easily make it look like you have an outstanding warrant. Not very hard to believe with this wrap sheet of yours. And I didn't even list off all of it, just your greatest hits. While you'll be wasting away in some station waiting for everything to being straightened out, our objectives will be met without interference. Police tend to not believe the word of a Juvenile Delinquent," Mathias placed the paper back into pocket triumphantly. He motioned to his grunts to move out and turned back to the young Trainer one more time as they headed down the path, "I'll see you around Lucas, and don't forget, my offer always stands,"

As much as Lucas hated to admit it, the Team Cosmic commander was right. If what he was saying was true, going to the police would be a dead end. But there had to be a way to stop them. Though Lucas knew next to nothing about Sinnoh, he did know about Team Galactic. The story was all over the news a little over two years ago. A group came the closest a criminal operation had come to destroying the world. They had escaped detection by fronting as a mere power company, until they were infiltrated by the Pokemon League and disbanded. Team Galactic still existed, but this time really as the benign energy corporation they claimed to be. Lucas had seen the billboards and posters for the company, Galactic Inc., along side advertisements for Devon/Silph Corp. Additionally, one of their old hideouts was the building Lucas' brother John had been inspecting rather than pick up his little brother from the docks when he first arrived in the region. He wasn't aware the headquarters were in Veilstone City, but now that he was here he had to interfere with Team Cosmic's plans. Now alone again the young man racked his brain for a solution. Suddenly a small, desperate plan formed in his head: maybe he could beat Cosmic to the punch. If he could get to Saturn first, then maybe he could ask him, beg him or threaten him into not joining the group that promised to eliminate weak Pokemon from the world.

It was worth a shot. After all, it was the only choice he had. Lucas sighed to himself. This meant the opportunity to get clean and rested at the Pokemon Center would have to wait.

Veilstone City was much smaller than Hearthome in terms of area, but it was still an impressively large city. A hilly, rock filled town, rather than move or destroy the natural stony feel to the area, the buildings were built on top of the geological features. This naturally made all the buildings taller, but additionally Veilstone was heavily populated by skyscrapers dozens of stories tall. Lucas didn't have much time to marvel at the architecture, he had to find Galactic's main office. He had confidence he would get there before Team Cosmic, as it was much easier for an individual to travel through a city than a group. And even if Lucas couldn't go to the police directly, he doubted Team Cosmic could exactly through a parade down main street, either. With Pokevice in hand, Lucas located his target. The Galactic Power Company Incorporated was just a block away from the Pokemon Center. The teen was tempted to stop, but he reminded himself time was of the essence.

The Galactic building was one of those artsy pieces of architecture that enabled it to remain distinct amongst the otherwise identical skyscrapers. It was about ten stories tall and tapered upwards, distinctly colored blue and white with sky-blue glass with the top looking like some type of spaceship. He had heard of a similar looking building was located in the American city of Seattle. The lobby of the building was spacious and open. Uniformed employees piled in and out of the elevator as they started or ended their shifts and a cool feminine voice happily announced slogans from the overhead system, "Galactic Power, powering Sinnoh and the future. Galactic Power, working for you while not over-working nature. Galactic Power, companies can care, we're one of them,"

After listening for several minutes to see if the announcements were more useful beyond promoting the company, Lucas crossed the tiled floor to the reception desk, "Where is Saturn?"

"I'm sorry, the CEO doesn't see anyone without an appointment. Do you have an appointment?" the receptionist was a green-haired girl with purple lipstick. Her eyes gave the dirty, haggard teen a skeptical once-over, but her cheery, helpful smile never wavered.

_Crap_. Lucas thought. Saturn is the CEO of the company. It made sense. Team Cosmic's mission was based off of power and strength. It would make sense to want to recruit someone from a wealthy company. Those in positions of influence in a company could be ruthless and there was little more powerful in the world than money. The teen still needed to try to dissuade Saturn from joining but he had no idea how he would get to him now. When the receptionist's cheeriness seemed to turn to distrust Lucas had to think of something before he'd get thrown out, "My school is making us do a paper on the power company. I was just wondering what the CEO did all day and where he spent most of his time. You know, something different from everyone else interested in just how the power company itself worked,"

The receptionist's smile returned and she motioned to a line forming by one of the elevators, "We do a tour twice a day. If you like you can join it. Our tour guides would be more than happy to answer any questions you have. You'll have to hurry, it's just about to start,"

"Thanks! That's a big help," with a smile of relief he ran over to the tour.

The group was made up of typical tourists: old retirees looking for something to do, a couple classes of disgruntled children who had a million ideas for better field trips than this and a few of those quiet, uninteresting people who genuinely found these kind of tours fascinating. Lucas knew he stuck out badly, but at this point opinions of him were the last thing on his mind. Another unnaturally cheerful woman with short green hair and a plastic smile held up a sign indicating the tour and lead everyone into the elevator, "Welcome everyone to Galactic Power Company Incorporated and we thank you for coming in to see how we work today. Galactic provides electricity and heat to everyone in Sinnoh, from businesses where you buy your food to the homes you live in. But I bet you wondered where that electricity came from and how a big business like this makes sure everyone's light bulbs light up when they are supposed to,"

Lucas tuned out to most of the information the woman was spouting, concentrating instead on figuring out when he could break away and seek out Saturn. The first floor of the tour revealed nothing of use, though after the second floor of touring the teen noticed something important. By the elevator was a key that indicated what was on each floor. First floor technicians. Second floor accounting. Third floor employee lounge. It was the tenth floor that Lucas became interested it, Executive offices.

"Excuse me, but where is a bathroom?" Lucas announced abruptly. The tour guide looked startled as though her carefully rehearsed speech had never been interrupted before. The teen also got an equal amount of glares from the school children furious he dared to do something that could potentially lengthen the tour by even a couple of minutes, and by the dull people who genuinely cared how important the accountants were to the company.

"Just around the corner. Galactic Power has three sets of bathrooms on every floor. Employee health and hygiene is one of our top priorities," The tour guide said in relief, happy to once again find a place for her robot-like propaganda. With a wave of gratitude and sheepish look for forgiveness, Lucas ran from the group to find 'the bathroom.'

Once out of the tour group's sight, the teen Trainer ran back to the elevator, relieved no one was inside as he stepped in and looked at the numbered panel. Another pitfall. The elevator only went to the 9th floor, a key slot at the bottom of the panel was needed to get off at the executive level. Discouraged but not defeated, Lucas pushed the button for the 9th floor. There had to be a way to get from the 10th floor from the 9th. A set of stairs, another private elevator, something. Lucas held his breath as the elevator went up, worried about what to do if an employee decided to get into his car. The teen boy was not the best at foreseeing potential problems, and now getting caught before reaching his destination felt like a real threat.

Luck, destiny or some pleased higher power was on the teen's side. The elevator made it to the 9th floor undisturbed, and Lucas quickly ducked out and behind a trashcan as he debated his next move. According to the key, this floor was for non-executive offices, the place where underlings made sure daily operations went smoothly and that the correct people were hired were located. The employees on this floor seem preoccupied with their work, or just stupefied by a streak of monotony that entered their daily routines. However, there also seemed to be some larger gentlemen, most likely security, keeping an eagle watch of the floor as they poured themselves water and several-hour-old coffee. Lucas scanned the doors and corridors, trying to guess which could possibly lead to the main boss's office.

A woman passed by with her friend, whining that her boss wanted yet another updated version of the file hand-delivered and cursed the flakey computer system that kept crashing and forcing analog deliver of information. The teen suspected he had a likely target and proceeded to follow her. She came to a door at the end of a long hall with a ten number key-pad next to the wall. With absentminded deftness, she punched in the necessary code so quickly Lucas couldn't even make out how many numbers were in the code, let alone what any of them were. She slipped past the door and shut it tightly behind her. A few minutes later she returned empty-handed, still whining about all the walking she was doing that day. With her gone the corridor the door and hall were left entirely alone, assumed that the electronic lock was enough security to dissuade any mischief-seekers from bothering with it. The teen wasn't sure when another person would pop by to visit the CEO, so he tried to think quickly. Today he was acting far smarter than he usually was, even with this completely improvised plan, but no amount of thinking was going to get the necessary code.

_In the movies the hero usually has some computer thing that can override the lock or figure out the code. But I don't have anything like that_. Lucas thought to himself, playing with his lip ring so fervently he was surprised to find he accidentally made a small tear that was lightly bleeding. _Or do I? _Lucas remembered about his Rotom, the playful Pokemon he found in the Old Chateau and how the electric/ghost-type had possessed and controlled a TV. Though security locks were far more complicated than an old TV, it was the best idea he had. Whispering to his Pokemon he told his plan, "Sparky, when I let you out I need you to go inside this keypad and fry it or something until the door opens,"

"Rrrotommm," Sparky said happily as it was released from its Pokeball and did as its Trainer asked. Unfortunately, the Pokemon's call must of have been loud enough to be heard, as two security guards were now running down the hall.

"What are you doing here?"

"C'mon Sparky, hurry," Lucas urged his Pokemon. The teen panicked as the large men rushed him. He wasn't afraid and was fairly certain he could fight them, but he could not afford to fail this close to his goal. He frantically tugged on the door until the keypad beeped with Sparky's success and the entry way popped open. The young man rushed inside and heaved the door closed just as the guards caught up to them. He let out a sigh of relief as he heard the guards yelling and pounding on the door as they called for backup.


	22. Chapter 22 The Battle for Saturn

Chapter 22: The Battle for Saturn

Lucas paused for a small sigh of relief. He had barely escaped the two guards that had come to throw him out of the Galactic Power building. It was only in the last second that his Rotom Sparky had used its powers to override the electronic lock that had sealed the door the Trainer was now leaning on. The Pokemon phased out of the wall and Lucas praised it heavily as he started moving forward. He knew he was still on the right track. The door lead to a marble staircase with a dark red carpet lined with palm trees every fifth step. Lucas ran up these steps now, thrilled to find that the second mahogany door at the top was unlocked. He swung the door open and ran inside.

He was certain now he was in the right place. The floor was one giant office with one large desk at the back. The huge glass windows flooded the area with sunlight and there were more palm trees and bookcases along the walls. Several fancy stone sculptures shaped like amorphous blobs were scattered around the vast space like a gallery. It was a stereotypical executive office in every way, shape and form. The only thing that rose doubts was the person behind the desk. The young man had dark blue hair parted down the center and spiked up like a cat's ears. He looked roughly Lucas' age, and it was possible he might have even been younger with his round, boyish face, "You're Saturn?"

The teen looked up at the intruder with the lazy despondent curiosity of a cat. He gazed Lucas up and down before settling his eyes on Gizmo's Pokeball on the teen's neck, "It's very impressive that you broke in here just for a Pokemon battle. I'll fight you, but afterward I'll have to ask you to leave,"

Lucas shook his head as he approached the desk, "I'm not here for a Pokemon battle,"

Saturn's difficult to read face showed a slight sign of concern as he reached under his desk, presumably to call for security.

"No, wait! I really need to talk to you, it's urgent," Lucas pleaded.

The boy behind the desk brought his hand back up and wove his fingers together, resting his chin on top of his folded hands, "You managed to get all the way up here, so it must be important. I'll listen. For now."

"My name is Lucas, and I came to tell you about something. There is this group called Team Cosmic. Their goal is to get rid of weakness in the world. And they mean weak people _and_ weak Pokemon," Lucas began. Saturn's eyes narrowed skeptically and unfolded his hands again. Lucas slammed his hands on the desk, "Please don't join them."

Lucas's request seemed to catch the power company's CEO off-guard, hand paused again beneath some unseen button, "You _don't_ want me to join them?"

The teen shook his head furiously, "They're horrible. When they say they want to get rid of weak people and Pokemon, they mean it literally. They want to completely eliminate them. I know that they would offer you a position of power, and probably a lot of money. But please, please don't ally yourself with them. Please, it's not worth anything they promise you,"

The Galactic CEO smiled but before he could say anything the two guards Lucas had alluded had come rushing into the office. Behind them were several dozen several reinforcements and the whiny woman who knew the office's security code, "Mr. CEO! Are you alright? We tried to stop him-"

Suddenly, one of the extra security guards slammed the two leaders with a billy club, sending both men to the ground unconscious. The woman screamed but was grabbed and gagged by one of the extra guards. Saturn stood up suddenly, preparing to react to the mysterious ambush. The man who attacked the other guards stepped forward and flashed an unsettling, familiar, snake-like smile. He pulled off his hat and revealed his true identity, "Good afternoon, CEO Saturn. I am Major Mathias of Team Cosmic, and I have come to make you an offer,"

"You!" Lucas snarled, "How did you get in here!"

"I have to say it's all thanks to you, my little friend," Mathias sneered.

Saturn looked to Mathias and then to Lucas, "Lucas, what's going on? You said you're against them, why did you help them get in here?"

"Oh, he didn't do it intentionally, bless his dumb heart. But when he got into your office and was noticed by security they immediately called for back up. We were able to infiltrate your security forces. Basically, you invited us in. I had a different plan to get in here, but when I ran into Lucas I figured he'd do the hard work for us by trying to sound the alarm," Mathias walked up to Lucas, his snake-smile widening unpleasantly. He was only a few feet away, and shorter than Lucas' brother John, but it still felt like the man towered and overwhelmed the teen.

"You used me," Lucas hissed. He was furious at the Major as well as himself for falling for the trap.

"Yes I did. But if you served me you would have gotten rewarded for your work. There are many rewards for working for Team Cosmic," He leaned in close to Lucas' face before immediately turning to Saturn, "And that is what I have come to talk to you about today, Mr. Saturn. Team Cosmic is all about strength, and you were one of the strongest Trainers in Sinnoh. You were in a position of great power, second-in-command of Team Galactic and we can give you that kind of power again,"

"Those days are behind me. I have no interest in any silly schemes for world domination or whatever asinine plans your group has," Saturn waved off the Major and sat back behind his desk to resume his work.

For the first time Lucas saw Mathias start to look angry, a flash of rage behind his otherwise perfectly kept charming demeanor, "Cyrus was a brilliant man who was brought down because he had a weak organization around him. We are different. We are all about strength. We will rid the world of the weakness in it-"

"And no doubt bring about an age of glory and wonder, I presume," Saturn said wryly, not looking up from his work, "Cyrus was not brilliant. He was insane. A charismatic lunatic who thought he could change the world for the better by eliminating emotions, something he viewed as weakness. Emotion is necessary in the world and more than likely so is what you perceive as weakness. Cyrus failed and so will you. And I want no part in it. I may be much younger than you, Major, but I have learned a lot in a very short time. I was blinded by false idealism but I am not easily deluded anymore. I'm sorry Lucas has wasted his time, I would have turned you down even if I hadn't talked to him first. Now if you don't mind, I have a legitimate company to run,"

The Major's temper finally cracked, "Unlike my favorite toy here, I'm afraid you don't have a choice. You will become a part of Team Cosmic whether you come willingly or not. Go! Arbok!"

The massive snake-like Pokemon came writhing out of its Pokeball and charged Saturn with a decisive slither. Lucas' heart rose in his throat. The Arbok's level was in its mid-fifties, had Mathias attacked him in Mt. Coronet, the Trainer's team would have been wiped out. Saturn reacted on reflex and jumped out from behind the desk, "Go! Bronzong!"

Bronzong was the evolved form of Bronzor, a Pokemon Lucas caught in Mt. Coronet. It was a psychic/steel-type and of an equal level to Mathias' Arbok. Saturn's Pokemon more than had the advantage. The Team Cosmic commander seemed unperturbed, "Arbok, Glare,"

"Bronzong! Psychic!" Saturn's demeanor seemed just as steely and calm as Mathias'. The snake Pokemon's attack failed and the wave of psychic energy collided into him. The Arbok sank limply to the floor.

The Major recalled his downed Pokemon and summoned another, "Go! Seviper!"

_It feels strangely appropriate for the Old Creeper to use snake Pokemon_, Lucas thought. He marveled at the battle, grateful with each passing second to not be a part of it, as the two powerful contenders clashed.

"Use Psychic, again, Bronzong," Saturn commanded.

"Fire Fang!" Though the psychic/steel-type may have had the advantage in type and move pool, Mathias' distinct advantage was speed. The Seviper whipped across the floor even faster than the Arbok and slammed into its opponent with burning teeth. The Bronzong slammed across the office, crashing into several sculptures that exploded into destroyed chunks of granite and marble, sending Mathias' own men scrambling for cover.

Saturn summoned back his fallen Pokemon, insulted rage cracking his otherwise deadpan face. He pulled out a second Pokeball, and kept glancing back to the elevator doors, "Go Crobat! Confuse Ray!"

The four-winged final form of Zubat glided into the sky before letting out an ear-piercing noise. Everyone in the room clamped their hands over their ears, allowing the female hostage a chance to escape and run behind her boss's desk for safety. The Seviper twitched strangely and thrashed its head about, clearly now so confused it was unsure which way was up. Even with its senses scrambled the loyal Pokemon still reacted to his master's voice, "Seviper, Night Slash!"

The Pokemon thrashed out towards its opponent, releasing a stream of black energy from its tail. The Crobat narrowly avoided the powerful attack and responded a Wing Attack. The two powerful creatures continued to exchange harrowing blows, devastating the carefully chosen decorations of the office and sending members of Team Cosmic diving for safety as they attempted to avoid the combatants. Neither Trainer backed down, Mathias proving what he said about Saturn was true, and in turn showing just how dangerous the Major genuinely was. Though the Galactic CEO was focused on the battle, a small piece of his attention kept flicking back to the elevator doors, as though he kept expecting something to happen.

Suddenly Saturn's expectations were fulfilled as the elevator doors beeped open and a flood of Veilstone City officers flooded the office, their weapons drawn. They turned their guns to the invading forces of Team Cosmic, "Everybody! On your knees with your hands up,"

Mathias seemed genuinely stunned, another new facet of the enemy Lucas had never seen before, "Where did they come from? No one knew we were here and you never touched your phone!"

The young man with the cat-like demeanor beamed with a satisfied smirk, "Most executives have a button which summons security. I happen to have two. The other being an emergency signal directly sent to the police department. I pressed it as you were giving your sales pitch,"

The Major responded with an amused smile, "I'm impressed with your quick thinking. Our Leader was quite correct in believing you would be a valuable asset to us. Between your powerful Pokemon and powerful mind you would have been very useful. It is a genuine shame that we were unable to recruit you, if not only a personal failure of mine,"

"Shut up and hands above your head!" one of the officers barked at the Team Cosmic commander.

Leisurely the man turned his attention to Lucas, ignoring the officer's order, "I'm afraid I must say farewell to you, my friend, but I promise you this won't be the last time we meet. We'll come to see eye to eye one of these days. I have failed in my objective today but it is far to early for me to quit the game. Seviper! Smokescreen!"

The poison-type opened its mouth and belched out a plume of black, foul-smelling smoke that filled the room and obscured all vision. The people in the room's eyes watered and they coughed and wheezed until Saturn's Crobat blew away the noxious gas with his wings. When the room was finally clear again, Mathias and Team Cosmic were gone, leaving a confused police force and a completely destroyed office. The officers attended to the real guards, still knocked out from the Major's attack, the distraught woman who hid behind the desk and the Galactic CEO. One officer gave a suspicious glance to Lucas, "We're glad to see you're alright, Mr. Saturn. But what should we do with this kid, is he part of Team Cosmic?"

"Not at all," Saturn shook his head smiled towards the other boy, "He was actually the one who tried to warn me about their attack. Unfortunately we were both caught by them. I'm very grateful he came," the richer teen approached the Trainer and addressed him directly, "I'm very happy to have met you today, Lucas. I know nothing about you, but you remind me very much of a young lady I met a few years ago. Just like you she tried to plead to me to quit Team Galactic and to treat my Pokemon with love and compassion, to reject to doctrine Cyrus was trying to push. While at first I ignored her and rejected her, I eventually realized she was right. That girl is now the Champion of Sinnoh. You have a good heart Lucas, and if what you did today proves you are like that girl, I believe you will be Champion, too," He turned back to the police and said, "Thank you for all your help today, but we do have a company to run, and I really must get back to work,"

Stepping over the rubble of his office, Saturn sat back behind his desk.


	23. Chapter 23 Lucas vs Maylene

Chapter 23: Lucas versus Maylene

With Team Cosmic's threat now over, and no sign of the group left in Veilstone City, Lucas returned to his original goal: going to the Pokemon Center, finally getting clean and spending a healthy amount of time in warm, dry surroundings. While his team was being healed the teen did his laundry and had a hot shower, putting the young man in a far better mood than he had been all day. Not only did he no longer feel like a half-drowned rat, he drank in the satisfaction of knowing he helped foil another one of Team Cosmic's plots. They had come to the city with a plan of forcibly recruiting the CEO of the region's electric company, Saturn, a former commander of the disbanded Team Galactic. Lucas had gone to Galactic's new incarnation as a legitimate company to try to warn Saturn of the plot, but his input was unnecessary. Saturn fought against Team Cosmic himself, with a Pokemon Battle between himself and the Cosmic commander Major Mathias. The battle was interrupted by the local police, secretly summoned by the CEO. After the attack though, the police had let the group get away and once again suspected Lucas of being involved with the crimes. It was a small wonder that the Pokemon regions relied more on the Pokemon League for law enforcement and security rather than a central government and police force.

His base needs met, Lucas went about to exploring the city. He wasn't in any hurry to challenge the Gym just yet, after all, he had only just arrived. The teen planned on stopping by so he could set up his strategy but before then he planned on looking around. According to the Pokevice, Veilstone City was home to a casino, a small park featuring craters from meteors, as well as the largest department store in the region. Lucas preferred to gamble more with his safety than his money and space junk was a lot less interesting to him than fossils, so his first stop was the department store.

Veilstone's Department Store reminded the boy very strongly of the one in Goldenrod City. Nicely dressed young ladies and gentlemen stood behind immaculately kept counters and helped customers purchase their wares. Each floor featured different types of items from furniture to the latest fashions to basic pharmaceutical goods and groceries. Back home in Johto, once a month Lucas' mother would take him with her when she went to the Goldenrod Department Store. Even when they were having their biggest fallouts and fights, even when he'd be grounded, the trip to Goldenrod was an unchanged ritual. The one time of the month when Lucas felt like a normal son in a normal family without his brother's shadow or his own bad behavior hanging over him. Lucas was able to restock personal goods such as laundry detergent and hair dye as well as purchase some harder to find Pokemon items like vitamins, and scoured a whole floor dedicated to TMs. While he had fun looking around at everything the store had to offer and shared some treats with his Pokemon at the snack counter, he couldn't shake the melancholy feeling he had as memories from Goldenrod teased at his mind.

This was the second time in a very short period that thoughts of home in Johto caused a bubbling of homesickness in Lucas' mind. When he said goodbye to Morgan, the bad-tempered dark-type Trainer from his hometown, he realized how much he missed his gang, and now in this department store, he realized how much he missed his parents. When the feelings started getting a little too strong, the teen decided now would be the time to check the Gym. Unfortunately, the Gym was on the other side of town and so those nagging memories continued to gnaw at Lucas' thoughts. He reminded himself this was precisely why he was on the Journey to begin with. If he became a greater Champion than John, his parents would finally see he was worth something and he could go home, welcomed with open arms. No more disappointment, no more shame, no more being his brother's inferior shadow.

Climbing up the carved stone steps to the top of the rock formation where the his target was located, Lucas found and read the sign that described the Gym and its leader: _Maylene, The Barefoot Fighting Genuis. A fighting-type Gym. _The teen thought to himself. Fighting-types were strong, tough Pokemon with tough defense and often times overwhelming offense, but they were also spectacularly weak against psychic-types and couldn't even touch ghost-types. The young man finally felt at a strong advantage, along his trip he had captured and trained several Pokemon that would make this Gym his easiest yet. Donna, his Espeon and Sparky, his Rotom, a psychic and ghost Pokemon respectively, were already on his team. Kazza, the Abra he traded for in Oreburgh was a Kadabra now that had survived well against the flamboyantly obnoxious Gym Leader Fantina. Chingling was among the first Pokemon he ever caught and the teen caught a Bronzor in Mt. Coronet. It was all a matter of organizing his team now and doing some last minute training. But he would not face the Leader today, he was still recovering from his long trek from Solaceon Town to Veilstone, he still wanted to explore the town and his hair needed some serious work. Stretching out the cramps that had formed in his legs from constantly climbing up and down the stone formations that made up the city, Lucas went back down the rocky steps and wandered leisurely around Veilstone until nightfall.

The term 'Gym' for the places that Trainers certified their Pokemon skills through battle came from the fact that the way trainers improved themselves resembled the way boxers and wrestlers trained at real gymnasiums. Aside from the title, Pokemon Gyms didn't resemble 'real' gyms. They were styled to better match the type and fighting style the Gym Leaders used. Water Gyms typically had pools, Grass Gyms resembled gardens and fields and Psychic Gyms often looked like libraries. The Veilstone Gym was a major exception. The Veilstone Gym looked so much like a traditional Gym, that when Lucas first went inside the next day, he had to step back outside to double-check that he was in the right place. Tough, muscle-bound men and women were sparring in boxing rings, lifting weights and practicing on punching bags. A man hitting a heavy bag and the woman holding it stopped what they were doing and watched Lucas to size him up. As feisty and as scrappy as the young man was, even in a dirty fight Lucas would have a hard time surviving against most of the people training here.

"I'm, um, here to challenge the Gym Leader," Lucas announced shakily. A couple of brutes lifting weights snickered at his nervousness. The jab at his pride made the teen more confident, "So which one of you meatheads is Maylene,"

"Maylene sure as hell ain't no meathead, boy, but if you're so gung ho about facing her, you're going to have to face me first," The man from the heavy bag grabbed a towel to wipe off his sweat and approached the teen.

"Okay then, I don't mind starting with you. The bigger they are, the harder they fall," The pierced boy sneered. The familiarity of pre-fight banter inflated the boy's confidence. He may not have been able to survive if he were ever to fight this man with his fists, but part of the battle was showing that that didn't scare him.

"Go! Machop!" The fighter growled. The small fighting Pokemon flexed its muscles as it appeared before its Trainer.

Lucas' smug smirk widened as he summoned his own Pokemon, "Go! Donna!"

The teen's opponent scowled when the psychic-type appeared on the field, and with good reason. In a matter of a few short attacks, the Machop was knocked out. The Junior Trainer then sent out another Machop and then another, and with Donna barely winded, the Trainer was defeated.

"My turn next!" The burly woman who was holding the heavy bag approached Lucas and pulled out her own Pokeball. Lucas recalled Donna and summoned out his Chingling next. Her team was another Machop and a poison/fighting-type called Croagunk, and like the man before her, she was defeated without Lucas' Pokemon taking a single hit. When the woman's final Pokemon fell and the battle was over, the Chingling even evolved into Chimecho.

Next the boxers from the ring challenged Lucas then came weight-lifters who had laughed at him. After a seventh fighter fell to the teen Trainer's team, all the Junior Trainers of the Gym were defeated. Lucas' first opponent scowled and gestured with his thumb to a set of doors in the back, "You proved your point, smart guy, you're a decent Trainer. If you want to challenge Maylene, you go back there. But don't get too cocky, kid, you managed to wipe us all out, but Maylene is a whole other weight class. Like I said before, she sure as hell ain't no meathead,"

Lucas was ready for anything now, and the fighter's warning words were almost entirely lost on him. He was fully confident, and knew the Leader would be a breeze. Though he did have to wonder what kind of bruiser this Maylene had to be to get so much respect from such a tough group. Following the fighter's instructions, the Mohawked young man headed through the set of doors to the Leader's room. Like the rest of the Gym, it was decorated in fighting equipment, looking like a wrestling ring with padding on the walls and even a set of bleachers for potential spectators. It seemed like the room had everything ready for a brawl, everything, except for the Gym Leader.

The teen groaned. Once again, he was subjected to dealing with a Leader who wasn't actually in their own Gym. Gardenia had lost her Pokemon, Roark spent more time in the coal mines than facing opponents and Fantina had closed the Gym to compete in the Super Contest. "Why break tradition?" Lucas muttered to himself. The Trainer flopped onto the bleacher and slid his hands behind his head. He could afford to wait, he just hoped he wouldn't have to wait for too long.

After staring at the Gym's ceiling for what felt like forever, Lucas finally heard a voice, though it certainly wasn't what he expected, "Oh gosh, I'm sorry! I didn't know anyone was here. I was out taking my dad some lunch at the casino. I hope you didn't have to wait for too long,"

Lucas sat up to see a girl who looked no more than fourteen years old with bright pink hair taking off a hooded sweatshirt and hanging it up on a hook on the Gym's wall. She had a bandage on her nose, a gold locket around her neck and several bruises on her arms, "_You're_ the Gym Leader here?" Lucas blurted despite himself.

"I know, I look really young, but trust me, I'm a fully certified Gym Leader!" the girl chirped.

"Um, well, your age isn't really what surprised me," Lucas tried to put his thoughts tactfully, a skill not exactly his forte, "Don't take this the wrong way but I, ah, really wasn't expecting the leader of a _fighting_ Gym to be so,well, cute,"

Maylene giggled, "Don't let looks fool you. Just because something is cute doesn't mean it's weak. Speaking of looks though, you look sort of familiar to me. Have we met before?"

"Obviously not, otherwise I don't think I'd be so shocked to see you," Lucas replied, still not quite adjusted to the idea that a girl who looked like she belonged in a high school musical was the well-respected leader of a fighting-type Gym.

"It'll come to me. In the meantime, let's get started," The girl positioned herself at the opposite end of the ring, "I am Maylene, the leader of the Veilstone City Gym. Fighting Pokemon are the definition of discipline and raw power. Who challenges me and my team in a contest of strength and courage?"

"The name's Lucas, and I've come for a badge!" the teen replied, pulling out a Pokeball and prepared for the beginning of the battle.

"Now I know where I recognize you from! I've battled against your brother, John. He was one of the toughest battles I've ever fought! Your brother is a master Trainer, small wonder he defeated the Sinnoh league as quickly as he did," Maylene gushed.

The teen felt a facial muscle spasm as the Leader sang the praises of his arrogant older brother, "How do you I'm related to that jackass?"

"He mentioned you briefly the last time we met, and you two look fairly similar. You both have the same jawline, the same brown eyes, you two even have the same pose right before a battle. Though you're a twig compared to him, size-wise. This is such an honor! I get to face the former Champion's baby brother! I wonder if you'll be as great as him,"

"Shut up! There is nothing great about my brother! He's a cocky, condescending asshole with no consideration for anyone else except himself. I'm nothing like him so don't ever compare him to me again!" Lucas roared. It amazed even him how anything positive mentioned about John could send the teen into that intense a rage that quickly.

Maylene blinked in disbelief, "Wow. What could John have possibly done to you to make you hate him that much?"

"None of your goddamn business. Now are we going to battle or stand around blabbing all day?" the young man snarled.

"Suit yourself. Go Machoke!" despite Lucas' violent anger towards her, Maylene kept her smile and high spirits. The Leader throw out the Pokeball with the evolved form of Machop inside.

"Go Kazza!" Lucas responded with his own Pokemon, "Use Confusion!"

"Low Kick!" Though Lucas had summoned a psychic-type, Maylene showed no hesitation or unease. She ordered her Pokemon to attack even though the Machoke had no chance against the speed of Lucas' Kadabra. The wave of psychic energy hit its mark directly. The fighting Pokemon didn't faint, but it clearly became disoriented from the attack. The Machoke looked around in bewilderment, almost not recognizing its Trainer, "Shoot, Machoke's confused. Shake it off Machoke. And use Karate Chop!"

"Confusion again, Kazza!" Lucas ordered. The faster Kadabra once again struck first and its muscle-bound opponent collapsed to the ground.

"Good job, Machoke. Now it's your turn Meditite!" Maylene's cheeriness didn't waver as she switched her knocked out Pokemon for her new one. Meditite was a Pokemon Lucas had never seen before. All he knew was it was another fighting-type, and that's all he needed to know.

"Kazza! Confusion!"

"Meditite! Beat Up!" Once again the psychic-type's attack hit directly, but for some odd reason the damage it did didn't seem as severe. In return, however, the dark-type move of the opponent Pokemon hit directly and the Kadabra's pathetic defenses had the Pokemon in a heap on the ground.

"Kazza! No!" Lucas recalled his defeated Pokemon and pulled out his Pokedex to figure out why his attack had so little effect on the Meditite. He found his answer. Maylene's Pokemon was a duel-type, the first of course was fighting, but the second was psychic, meaning that the mega weakness the first type had was completely nullified. Whatever cockiness his earlier battles had brought him was gone. The fighter was right, Maylene was no weakling, and she wasn't stupid either. If he didn't want his Pokemon to suffer, the teen would have to keep his ego, and his temper, in check. Meditite still had a weakness, and Lucas still had a Pokemon that had an advantage, "Go Sparky! Astonish!"

The carefree Rotom arrived carelessly into the ring, barely avoiding another Beat Up attack. Lucas sighed that Sparky's flakiness still hadn't gone away, even with all the badges the Trainer now had. Even with its personality flaw, the electric ghost quickly got into fighting mode, causing the Meditite to flinch over and over with its Astonish attack. Eventually Maylene's second Pokemon collapsed onto the mat. Maylene began to look more serious now as she pulled out her final Pokeball. Lucas had to be extra careful now. Whatever this next creature was, he was sure the Leader saved the strongest for last, "Go! Lucario!"

Lucas grimaced. This Lucario was like Rex, the Pokemon that had belonged to his crush Ashley. Her Lucario was trained for Contests, and had won the Super Contest's Tough competition. Even so, in battle it was a formidable opponent with its combination of steel and fighting moves. This Pokemon belonged to a Gym Leader, who no doubt had trained it exclusively for battling. This would not be an easy fight, even if Sparky couldn't get hit by fighting moves, "Sparky! Thundershock!"

"Lucario! Foresight!" Maylene commanded. The Rotom's attack hit and did decent damage, but not before the Lucario's eyes glowed and focused on the ghost, "Now use Drain Punch!"

"Use Astonish, Sparky!" Though the Rotom tried hard to hit first, the Lucario was just too fast. The teen boy held his breath but winced when the Pokemon's punch made full contact. By using the Foresight attack, the powerful fighting moves with their high damage could now hit any ghost. And to make things even worse, whatever damage the electric Pokemon had caused in the previous turn was reversed as the Lucario's attack drained energy out of his Pokemon's body. Thankfully, Sparky was not knocked out by the blow, but he could not afford to get hit again. The Rotom had already been knocked out during his last Gym match, Lucas didn't want it to happen again. He called Sparky back and hesitated about which Pokemon to summon next. Lucas' arrogance was punishing him badly. He was so sure he could breeze through this Gym he had only packed his team with psychic-types, putting most of his regulars in the PC in favor of the type advantage, including his Charmeleon whose fire attacks would be more helpful in this fight. A psychic-type could still have the advantage over Maylene's powerful steel/fighting Pokemon, but only if he could out-speed it. If not, the psychic's universal weakness of low physical defense would doom his team, and his match. The thoughts racing in his head, the boy finally made his selection, "Go Donna! Psywave!"

"Bone Rush!" It was no good, even Donna's speed wasn't high enough. The insanely powerful Lucario's attack hit full force, sending the evolved Eevee crashing across the Gym. The only small mercy that she landed against the padded mats bolted to the walls, slightly softening the intense blow. Maylene then severely wounded Lucas' Chimecho followed by his instantly knocked out Bronzor.

Lucas still had Pokemon in fighting condition, but they were all weakened and wouldn't survive a blow from the Lucario. The Bronzor did give the teen an idea, however. Through that battle he was reminded that ground-based moves were lethal to steel-types and that fighting-types didn't fair any better against ground Pokemon. It meant that as powerful as the Lucario was, it had a dual type disadvantage. One knock from a ground-type move should be enough to take out the powerful Pokemon.

Of Lucas' normal team, he boxed all his Pokemon except Gizmo. He just didn't have the heart to be separated from his first Pokemon, even if just for a short time. The previous day when he was shopping at the Veilstone Department Store the Trainer had purchased the TM for the move Dig and happened to teach it to the Eevee. He didn't know if Gizmo was faster than the Lucario, but the normal-type was his only hope, "Go Gizmo!"

"Lucario, Drain Punch!" while the Leader looked sceptically at the Eevee with its massive type disadvantage, she also didn't take any chances.

"Gizmo! Dig!" When Lucas announced the command, Maylene smiled, realizing her opponent's strategy. Though Gizmo was amazingly fast, the Lucario was still just a bit faster and the Pokemon's fist-like paw collided directly with his tiny rival. The Eevee went flying through the air and landed on the ground with a telling 'thud.' Lucas lowered his head in defeat. There was no way to win now. And he had sent his first Pokemon into an unceremonious defeat. A tiny 'viii' forced the Trainer to look up and see that where his Eevee had landed was now replaced with a small pile of dirt and a hole in the Gym floor. Gizmo had survived! But just barely. According to the Pokedex, the normal-type was hanging on by a thread. This attack would determine the end. If Gizmo missed, Lucas was toast, if Gizmo hit his mark, victory would be his. Maylene seemed to realize the same thing.

Both Trainers held their breath as the Lucario paced around, trying to anticipate where the Eevee would strike. The Pokemon took a step back when a low rumble came from behind. A column of dirt and stones exploded out of the ground, sending the mighty steel-and-fighting type soaring into the air. Gizmo appeared from underneath this column, clearly looking exhausted. The small Pokemon's limbs were shaking as he struggled to stay standing. As for the Lucario it landed back on its feet, a determined look on its face. Maylene smiled triumphantly, "Let's finish this Lucario! One more Drain Punch!"

The command fell on deaf ears as suddenly the Lucario collapsed face first into the mat, its strength entirely drained by the Eevee's previous attack, its attitude deceiving its real condition. The battle was over, Lucas had won. As the realization dawned on the Trainer he ran over to his victorious Pokemon and picked him off of the ground, "I did it! I beat you!"

Maylene comforted her defeated Pokemon before sending it back to its Pokeball. She faced her opponent and smiled, "You're right. You are nothing like your brother,"

"You mean I'm better?" Lucas asked eagerly as he scratched Gizmo's head in congratulations.

"Well, not better necessarily, but definitely entirely different," the Leader explained, "What made John so amazing was that I managed to defeat almost his entire team with my first Pokemon. But then with his final Pokemon he completely turned it around. No matter how battered and hurt his Pokemon was, he was willing to push his Pokemon to its fullest potential, to squeeze out of it all the talent and power it had. It's a real skill to utilize a Pokemon's real power like that. It's a real risk, and requires complete trust and confidence in your team. You, on the other hand, fight entirely with compassion. You don't always think very strategically, at least not consciously. When you see your Pokemon is at a real disadvantage, you don't hesitate to switch tactics as the swing of battle changes. You're also not afraid to think outside the box. That makes you and your team incredibly difficult to read. Even if someone may be stronger than you, or even more talented, you still find a way to break their strategy. John may have real power and skill, but you have amazing tactics. That makes you as different as day and night,"

"I-I'm sorry I blew up at you earlier," Lucas stated humbly, "I'm not good at controlling my temper, or my mouth and when you started talking about John, it sorta struck a nerve. John and I haven't gotten along in a very long time. It seems I'm the only person who really sees who he is, and everyone else just sees me as his failure little brother,"

"Family is a funny thing isn't it? My dad wastes his entire day and most of his money gambling in that stupid casino, but I still love the old guy and bring him lunch every day. I'm completely ashamed of what's become, but back in the day he was a great fighter, and I can always be proud of that and proud to share that in common with him. Even if whatever he did to you was as awful as you seem to imply, John's still a brilliant Trainer. Sharing something in common that's good isn't a bad thing, even if it's someone you don't like or are ashamed of. So maybe in the future being compared to John isn't such a bad thing?"

"I guess I never thought of it that way...makes entirely too much sense. I was always so busy trying not to be like him at all, so people'd stop comparing us, that I even did really some stupid things just so we would be more different. I guess John does have _some_ good qualities," Lucas admitted sheepishly.

"Anyway, you did defeat me fair and square, so I award you the Cobble Badge, which will allow you use the move Fly outside of battle and fly on the back of your Pokemon. I also give you the TM for Drain Punch. As you saw it can be a real game changing move," Maylene smiled and presented Lucas' winnings.

The teen boy approached the Leader to collect his prizes when he noticed her locket had fallen off during the match. It had popped open and Lucas could see a photo of a girl with black hair inside, "Here, you dropped this,"

Maylene's smile turned to embarrassment as her face turned bright red and she snatched the necklace from Lucas' hand, "Th-thank you for that,"

The boy wondered who the person in the photograph was to cause the Leader to become so flustered, but decided to stay out of her business. With his own business with the Gym over, he bid farewell to the pink haired girl and headed back to the Pokemon Center. He had four badges now, he was half-way done with the League and it was only a matter of time before he would face the Elite Four and the Champion of Sinnoh. Though his confidence in his skills and his team was growing, the constant thoughts about home were increasingly bothering him. As he walked he thought about everything the Veilstone Gym Leader said and pulled out his Pokevice.

"Hey John, it's me," Lucas announced as his Pokemon device connected with his brother's phone.

"Wow, Delinquent, I haven't heard from you in ages. I figured you must have been thrown in jail,"

"No, I haven't been arrested," the boy said irritably, "I'm just calling to let you know I'm not dead or anything. I've just been really busy with the Journey and letting you know where I am. I'm in Veilstone now and just got my fourth badge,"

"You haven't quit yet? I gotta say, I'm pretty surprised you've stuck to it this long. Four badges isn't bad either, though you're still no where close to being a Champion yet there, Little Lulu. Just remember our deal, when things finally do get too tough for you, you better get back here and start living by my rules. Mom and Dad have been asking a lot of questions,"

"You know what? I'm not going to quit, and I am going to be the Champion not just of Sinnoh, but of Hoenn, Kanto and Johto, too! So screw you, John!" With a final snarl the teen hung up on his older brother. John may have had some good qualities, but in Lucas' eyes, his sibling was still mostly a stubborn, condescending, arrogant ass. Maylene was right that the two did have some good things in common: the boy could be just as stubborn as John was. And with that one phone call all the homesickness and tugging memories disappeared, replaced once again with steely determination and rage. He was no where ready to go home yet, he had to beat John first.


	24. Chapter 24 The Detour

Chapter 24: The Detour

Four down, four to go. After winning his forth badge at the Veilstone City Gym, Lucas called his brother John to let him know how he was doing in an attempt to reconcile with his sibling. But after their short phone conversation, the former juvenile delinquent was fully reminded of what precisely he hated so much about John, and had his motivation to become Champion completely recharged. All the doubts and creeping homesickness that had plagued him since parting with the dark-trainer Morgan instantly evaporated with the call, and Lucas was fired up to move on to the next town and the next Gym.

The teen only stopped briefly at the Pokemon Center the switch out his team before heading out to Route 214. He boxed his Kadabra, Chimecho and Bronzor and exchanged them for Franky, Hotrod and his new Buneary, Stella. Route 214 was a flat, rocky path that was littered with tall, thick shrubbery. It meant the Trainer would not get too tired from the walk, but it also meant he had to be careful where he tread to avoid tripping and face-planting over hidden stones and napping Rock Pokemon. According to the Pokevice, the Route was a straight, easy to navigate path that split once he passed Lake Valor, a small resort along the way. Like in Hearthome, from there he had a choice of two towns and two Gyms: Pastoria City, which he had skipped back in Hearthome in favor of Veilstone, and Sunnyshore City, a coastal town where the ferries to and from the Hoenn region could be caught. Sunnyshore was also the town Ashley had gone to after leaving Hearthome after the Super Contest. He knew she would be long gone from the area, but a tiny part of him hoped he could see her again, even if it were only to show that the egg she had given him had hatched.

The unrealistic idea was reason enough, so Lucas settled on Sunnyshore. Route 214 was long, but the relatively obstacle-less path could be walked in a little over a day. If the teen kept a good pace, he would get to Lake Valor by the next morning, and at Sunnyshore by the afternoon. Compared to the soggy, unpleasant experience of Route 215, 214 was a nice one as the warm mid-day sun glazed the boy's skin and a light dry wind blew at his back. His feet kept a steady rhythm as the boots ground against the gravel of the road. A few Trainers littered the path, but the increasingly experienced young man found these opponents to hardly be a challenge.

He was getting better. It wasn't just that his team got stronger every time he fought, or that he found stronger and rarer Pokemon, he genuinely felt like with each battle he was getting smarter. People's strategies and attacks didn't catch him off-guard as often anymore, and he didn't feel as lost or as naive. He finally felt like was good at something and it was a good feeling to have.

As the teen crossed a short patch of grass, a small black and orange canine blocked his path. It was the dark/fire type Houndour, the preevolved form of Morgan's Hounddoom. The Pokemon looked cocky and self-assured, like a puppy that had won tug-o-war against its sibling for the first time. Lucas took this opportunity not just to try to catch the spunky creature, but give some training to one of his newest Pokemon, "Go! Stella!"

This was the first time Lucas had dealt with Stella since she was born, and it was the first time she went into battle, but her reaction was not what he expected. As soon as Stella came out of her Pokeball she immediately threw a large and very loud tantrum. The normal-type's behavior even caught the Houndour off-guard and it held back its attack. When it was clear Stella had no intention of stopping her crying, Lucas called her back and summoned Hotrod instead. After a few short attacks the Houndour was caught. A couple of hours later Lucas found a Rhyhorn and once again sent out Stella, and once again the rabbit-like Pokemon shrieked and cried and stomped its paws on the ground. Once more the Trainer switched the bad-tempered Pokemon for one of his team and again added a new Pokemon to his collection.

As the afternoon wore on, the teen Trainer dealt with almost a dozen more of Stella's battle-related tantrums. According to the Pokedex nothing was actually wrong with Stella. Her health was just fine, she had no status issues and she was fully fed and hydrated. In fact, after all her short stints in battle, she was almost level 9. Finally, Lucas tried a different approach. After another battle against a high-level Geodude, the boy paused by a rock and released his Buneary. She was not shrieking this time, but she was clearly unhappy, "What's the matter, girl? Do you not like fighting? Are you scared?"

Lucas picked up the infant normal-type, and once again she looked into his eyes like she did the day she hatched. He cradled the Pokemon and patted her head. For moment, she seemed to calm down, but then she used her small feet and kicked her Trainer in the chest. In a combination of pain and shock, Lucas dropped the Pokemon. Stella landed on the dusty ground unharmed and began to play with a pebble between her paws. When the teen boy tried to pet the Pokemon again and comfort her, she started another tantrum, one even louder and more violent than any of the ones she ever had before. The young man stared, stunned, at his Pokemon. He had dozens of the creatures now, all with different temperaments and personalities, some species even considered especially dangerous to people, but before that moment he never had his own Pokemon that had attacked him. Something had to be wrong with Stella, he just had no idea what. Suddenly all that confidence he had about knowing what he was doing vanished. He recalled the distraught Pokemon and returned to his march towards Lake Valor, though his pace was slightly slowed by his new disheartened feeling.

As he had predicted, Lake Valor and the small resort built around it came into view early the next morning. The resort was like a small town in itself: there were small shops and restaurants, several small motels and individual villas people could rent. He had to whistle when viewing the high-end vacation spot. Even if he became Champion for years he doubted he could ever afford to stay at even one of the smaller hotels for more than a day. Most of the people here were clearly not Trainers and completely ignored Lucas as he wandered around the area. This meant this place would not have a Pokemon Center, but the teen didn't worry too much about it as Sunnyshore City was only a few more hours a way. He would get someone to check out Stella then.

Lucas turned the corner between some villas that lead to the path to Sunnyshore when he ran into something strange. A large crowd of annoyed-looking people were gathered around an officially dressed man standing in front of the door to the gatehouse to Sunnyshore City. He held a bullhorn in one hand and was trying to gesture to the crowd to be quiet with the other. Looking around, Lucas realized that this crowd was made up almost entirely of Trainers based off of their dress and the few loose Pokemon in the group. The teen boy joined the crowd to discover what the man had to say. Standing next to Lucas was a funny-looking guy with a laid-back stance and a bright, red Afro. When the dull roar of the crowd lessened slightly, the official brought up the bullhorn to his mouth and spoke, "I'm sorry, but the path to Sunnyshore will be closed again today. The road is still being blocked off as the power system in Sunnyshore is being repaired. We still have no official word on when the repairs will be finished and the path reopened. So please check back tomorrow. We appreciate your patience,"

The crowd was anything but patient as they let out a collective groan interspersed with swears and complaints of incompetency, but when it was clear the official had nothing more to say and the gatehouse would remain locked, the mob slowly dispersed. Lucas let out a swear of his own now that he knew he would be unable to go to Sunnyshore. He was one of the last of the group to leave, the very last was the funky-looking guy with his hippy sandals and candy-apple red Afro. As Lucas walked away he noticed the young man's expression was somewhere between disappointment and bemusement as he shook his head and said to no one in particular, "Seriously, bro? Not again..."

With Sunnyshore temporarily off-limits, it meant that the teen would have to go to Pastoria instead. He wasn't entirely sure why he was so reluctant to head to this city, though he suspected that it being right next to wetlands had a large part to do with it. Marshes and swamps meant rain, and when Lucas thought about the idea of rain again just barely a few days after half-drowning on Route 215 his shuffled pace slowed down even more. The gatehouse to Pastoria was on the south side of the resort and when Lucas got there he stopped and stared at it, still not ready to face the possibility of heading to an area with a danger of precipitation. Near the gatehouse was a restaurant. Not having had breakfast yet, the Trainer chose to stop by and stall just a little while longer.

Thankfully, the restaurant didn't look too expensive. Unlike the rest of the resort, this establishment appeared to cater to the traveling Trainers as well as the resort guests offering food from haute cousine to basic foods such as reasonably priced sandwiches and salads. As Lucas approached the host to be seated, he noticed a familiar wild black haircut, clashing neon clothing and heavy makeup seated at a table and drinking coffee.

"Morgan?" Lucas was very surprised to see his informal rival. After their parting at the cafe north of Soleceon Town he assumed it would be months or even years before he would see the fellow Trainer from Cherrygrove City. Ignoring the small throng of people waiting for tables, he headed for the girl with her typical sullen expression accentuated by her large lower lip and rounded nose.

The grim young woman glanced up from her steaming mug and regarded the mohawked with mild surprise, "Ah, Lucas, I didn't figure we'd meet up again so soon, Rooster Boy,"

Lucas sneered at the insulting nickname the girl used in reference to his red and black hair. _Yup, definitely Morgan, though I doubt anyone else would attempt to look like that on purpose_, "What are you doing here, Motley Crue? I thought you were going to Celestic Town,"

"Been and left. I was on my way to Sunnyshore to catch a ferry to Hoenn, but the road's been closed since yesterday. I take it you came here from Veilstone, how'd the Gym match go?" Morgan asked as she tore into a slice of buttered toast.

Lucas sat down at the girl's table and opened up his vest to show his newest badge"I won. Was kinda close though. Only won because I taught Gizmo Dig. How'd you get here so fast? It's only been a few days since we saw each other,"

"I have a Pokemon that knows Fly, obviously," the teen girl said with an eye-roll, "Veilstone's leader has fighting-types if I remember correctly. Pretty impressive that you won with a normal-type. Not a big fighting-type fan obviously, since they are so powerful against my lovely dark-types. Speaking of which, since you just came from Route 214 did you run into any Houndour?"

"Caught one, actually. A pretty spunky male, haven't started training him yet though," He missed the snarky but genuine exchanges with Morgan, even if he would be tortured before admitting it to her.

"Oh, aren't Houndours just the greatest? They are just so cute and cuddly and loyal as can be. You should totally add it to your team the first chance you get," it never ceased to amaze Lucas how the girl's acidic personality would shift so quickly when talking to or discussing Pokemon. It was one of the things he actually liked about her, "So you on your way to Pastoria?"

"No, like you I was trying to get to Sunnyshore, but it looks like I don't have much of a choice. You going to finish that bacon?" Lucas added hungrily as he lunged for the seemingly untouched part of her breakfast.

The girl covered her plate with her hand defensively, "Go for my food again, fish lips, and you pull back a nub. Anyway, you're better going for Pastoria's Gym before Sunnyshore. Most people don't challenge, Volkner, the Leader, until they have at least six badges. He's an extremely powerful Trainer, on par with the members of the Elite Four. He alone is what makes the Sinnoh League so tough, many Trainers never get a chance to even get to Victory Road because they never get their eighth badges,"

"Wow, he's that strong? I guess I really don't have a choice, I will have to go to Pastoria," Lucas said with a slight grumble.

"What's so bad about Pastoria? It's a pretty city, very green. And they have the Great Marsh, which is like the Safari Zone in back home near Cinnabar. I've actually been going there while waiting for Sunnyshore's road to open back up again. I'm trying to catch a Scoropi. Their evolved form is a bug-and-dark type. I'm going back today after I eat. I really want one,"

"I guess that doesn't sound bad. But I'm not looking forward to all the rain that happens in the marshes," the boy sighed.

"Wait. You've been avoiding Pastoria City because it might rain? What are you, some kind of wuss?" Morgan snorted in her coffee.

"I just don't like the rain, okay! Everyone has something they really don't like. In your case it seems to be the ozone layer, you over-AquaNetted hag!" Lucas snarled back.

"Wuss!"

"Hag!"

"Wuss!"

"Hag!"

After Lucas ordered breakfast the two Trainers walked together to Pastoria, arguing and insulting each other the whole way.


	25. Chapter 25 Lucas vs Barry

Chapter 25: Lucas versus Barry

Pastoria City was not as bad as Lucas was expecting, though it probably helped that it wasn't pouring when he got there. The teen had been avoiding going to the town for weeks after discovering it was near a marsh, but after winning the badge in Veilstone City, and the way to Sunnyshore blocked off because of electrical problems, he could no longer avoid the city and its Pokemon League required badge. It was clear it rained in the area a lot. Everyone there either carried an umbrella or a poncho but there were lots of canopies and shelters to hide under as well, something the rain-hating Lucas could truly appreciate. Morgan, whom he ran into at Lake Valor, continued to tease the young man about his dislike of rain as they headed to the Pokemon Center together. To outsiders, the two Trainers exchanging R-rated insults at each other looked like they hated each other, but at this point their constant arguing was a well worn ritual and in reality they were respectful, if reluctant, friends.

"Hey, Nurse. While you're healing my Pokemon could you please give my Stella a full examination, she's been acting sorta weird and I'm worried," Lucas asked the woman behind the counter of the Pokemon Center as Morgan waited for him.

"If you want a thorough examination I'm afraid I won't be able to give her back right away. Full examinations take a couple of hours because the test results tend to be a bit slower," The nurse replied.

"Is something wrong with one of your Pokemon?" Morgan asked with great concern.

"I don't know, maybe, I think so. A few days ago the Pokemon Egg I had hatched and the Pokemon inside has been acting really strange. At first she was fine, but after I took her out of the PC Box and tried to use her in battles, she just acts completely hysterical and whiny," Lucas explained as he stepped away from the counter, dumped himself on a Center couch and ran his hands through his hair, "But there isn't anything I can do until the nurse tells me if there's anything wrong,"

"I'm sorry about that, I hope it's nothing serious," the grim Trainer replied sympathetically.

Lucas changed the subject to try to get his mind off of his worries, "Hey, do you know anything about the Gym Leader here?"

"Not really. A year ago this Gym was still run by a water-type Leader named Crasher Wake. But he joined the Elite Four and I don't know anything about the person who replaced him. Though I have heard that the new guy's changed the Gym's type specialty, so I don't think it's a Water Gym anymore,"

"Well, guess that means I need to do some recon," Lucas sighed. He got back off the couch, stretched out his limbs and gestured farewell to Morgan, "Thanks anyway,"

"If you need me I'll be in the Great Marsh," Morgan replied.

"Since when have I ever needed you?"

"Since the five seconds ago when you asked if I knew anything about the Gym, dumbass,"

"Fair enough,"

The Pastoria City Gym was southwest of the Pokemon Center, and on his way there Lucas read all the signs and advertisements for the Great Marsh. The attraction appeared to be the city's main source of income and it seemed everyone tried to entice people to go there. But more frequent than the Great Marsh posters seemed to be pictures, statues and stencils of the poison-and-dark type, Croagunk. Lucas had fought one of the creatures in Veilstone and didn't find anything special about it. It certainly was an interesting Pokemon with its type combination and its creepy smile, but couldn't understand why the people of this area considered the Pokemon such an important creature.

Finally arriving at the Gym, Lucas tried his best to figure out his strategy for this next Leader. The sign for the Gym Leader was different than all the high-quality engraved plaques that existed in front of all the other Gyms in Sinnoh. The one for Pastoria looked more like a sign for a garage sale with its cheap paper and hand-written lettering. With the stacks of building supplies and tarps around the Gym's front Lucas could only assume it was still under renovation, though it was odd to still be under construction a year after the Gym Leader took over. Clearly who was in charge of this Gym now wasn't very organized. The sign was slightly difficult to read with its rushed, unclear letters, but the teen frowned even after finally making out the scrawl: _Barry, The High-Spirited Fighter_.

Up until now the Gym specialties were fairly easy to figure out based off the Leader descriptions. Only Fantina's Leader description in Hearthome City left the pierced young man puzzled, but now this new sign left him just as stumped. He tried to use the words as clues, but none of his ideas made much sense. Spirit could mean ghost, but Fantina was already the ghost Leader of Sinnoh, and he doubted the League would allow two Gyms to share the same type specialty. Fighter was out as well, as Maylene was the 'barefoot fighting genius.' Was 'high' the key word? Was this a flying-type Gym perhaps? When it was clear staring at the poorly made sign was not going to get Lucas anywhere, he decided to ask around town. Clearly a resident of Pastoria must know _something_ about their local Gym.

The tattooed teen spotted two high school girls chatting with each other while absentmindedly swinging their pink plastic umbrellas, following jovially behind was a cheerful little Skitty that wove between the two girls' feet. Lucas decided they must be Trainers and called out to them, "Hey! Do you guys know anything about the Gym Leader here?"

"You mean Crasher Wake? Well, he's got like a TV show and he trains water Pokemon, I think," said the first girl.

The second girl nudged her in the ribs and chastised, "God, Melanie! Crasher Wake hasn't been the Leader here for over a year! You can be such a blonde sometimes!" She then turned to Lucas, "Uh, I don't know who the new Leader is, per se, but I'm pretty sure it's still a water Gym, the pool's still there,"

"No it's not, they tore the pool out eight months ago, that I remember," the slightly spacey Melanie said.

"Melanie, how can you pay attention that the pool got torn out but not know Crasher Wake is gone? You are so totally random," the second girl laughed.

"I dunno, I thought he was like, redecorating the Gym or something," Melanie shrugged.

"Um, yeah, well, thanks anyway," Lucas said with a sigh as he left the two girls still talking about Melanie's selective ability to pay attention. Other residents of town weren't any more help, though he did finally learn what was up with all the Croagunk. A very nice, but slightly batty, old lady spent a good ten minutes explaining how the poison-and-dark Pokemon was good luck and the mascot of the city since so many lived in the marshes just to the west of town, instead of answering Lucas' original question. He was amazed how no one in town knew who the new Leader was, or thought the mysterious Crasher Wake still ran the Gym. This still meant that he himself didn't know what this Barry used or how to counter him. The teen was flying blind.

A little while later Lucas returned to the Pokemon Center. There was still no word on Stella and her results. At the PC Box system, the teen tried to figure out how to set up his team. He had Gizmo, Donna, Hotrod, Sparky and Franky with him, while his Buneary was with the nurse. He had a Bidoof, Gastly, Geodude, Ponyta, Zubat, Gible and Budew, as well as several other Pokemon but they were all fairly low level, as well as a whole stack of Eevee eggs, having not had much time to train them properly. His Chimecho, Kadabra, Beautifly, Bronzor and recently caught Houndour and Rhyhorn were much higher level, but he had no idea whether any of them had a type advantage or knew any attacks that would work well. If Lucas' guess was right, and the Gym Leader did use flying types, bug, fighting and ground-types were out of the question. Electric, rock and ice moves would be best, but what if his guess was totally wrong? Thinking over the types on his current team, Lucas settled on his new Rhyhorn as his safest bet. It would leave him with the widest range of types and give him a chance, regardless of what the Leader used. Selecting his Pokemon, the teen noticed he had been unconsciously playing with his lip rings again, meaning he was more nervous about this fight than any other so far. The Mohawked boy let out a sigh, any confidence he had that he was becoming a better Trainer and smarter person was just about gone now.

The inside of the Pastoria Gym was even more ransacked and chaotic than the outside. Hanging wires, torn concrete, drop cloths, ladders and buckets of paint filled the massive hall. Now useless drainage switches seemed to be all that remained of the old water Gym. Lucas wondered if the reason no one knew much about Barry was simply because no one battled him. The Gym seemed to be closed since he took over. He didn't see a closed sign or warning tape but there were no Junior Trainers, not even any working lights. It would not come as a surprise to the teen to have the come to a closed Gym with no Leader. Based off of his past experiences with the Sinnoh League Gyms, he'd be more shocked to find the Leader in the Gym, with his Pokemon, waiting for an opponent. But if the Gym was closed how was he supposed to get all eight badges? Was there another Gym somewhere that made up for this one? Just as Lucas turned around to leave, a voice from the back of the building called out, "Hello, is anyone there?"

"Um, yeah, my name is Lucas, I've come to challenge the Gym Leader," Lucas shouted back.

"Alright! A challenger!" A boy with spiky blonde hair wearing a scarf leapt out from behind a pile of 2x4s and came racing towards Lucas, coming to a precarious stop only a few feet in front of him and seemed to keep bouncing up and down on the balls of his feet even though he stopped running. Lucas thought Maylene looked young for a Gym Leader, but this kid barely looked twelve. While the teen glanced over his next opponent, the boy seemed to speak a million miles an hour, "Sorry about the mess, the Gym's still being renovated. You know construction workers, they only seem to come every few days when they feel like it. I can't even get anyone to be my Junior Trainer yet because the Gym looks so bad. Most people assume the Gym is closed but it really isn't, I'm open all the time. I took over this Gym from my hero and mentor Crasher Wake. Crasher Wake is not only one of the greatest Trainers of all time, he's also an awesome wrestler! I used to watch him all the time on TV. So it's no wonder that he became part of the Elite Four. I was honored that he let me take over the Gym. Okay, so I sorta begged, for a really long time, but I still got it! That's why I changed the Gym's specialty, I didn't want to dare to try to surpass my hero! That's why I'm Barry, the High-Spirited Fighter!"

_High-spirited? Try seventh level ADD on a sugar rush with a Red Bull chaser!_ Lucas thought to himself as he tried to absorb the wall of words the boy just spat out, "But what does that even mean? What kind of Gym even is this?"

"Oh, isn't that obvious? It's a poison-type Gym," Barry blinked at the teenager as though his question was the silliest thing he ever heard.

"How do you get 'poison-type' out of 'high-spirits'?"

"Spirits are a type of alcohol. Alcohol can be very poisonous if you drink too much or use the kind that's supposed to be for cleaning and not drinking," Barry explained with a beaming smile.

_Somewhere along the line this kid's train of logic crashed and exploded into a fiery ball_. Lucas shook his head. At least he had some good advantages. Like fighting-types, poison-types were super weak against psychics, and additionally were weak against steel, rock and ground Pokemon. He knew he would be okay against this spastic adolescent. "Well, Barry, I'm here for my badge, so let's go! Go Rhyhorn!"

"Go Tentacruel!" Barry didn't even bother to give himself some space as he summoned his Pokemon right where he was standing, just a few feet away from Lucas.

"Watch what you're doing you methed-up twerp!" Lucas swore and jerked away as the large jellyfish appeared in the Gym, giving the teen barely any time to escape its massive, stinging tentacles. The teen boy already didn't like this kid and now he disliked him even more as he scrambled to a safe place to give commands to his rock-type. Not only was the hyper Leader annoying, confusing and had summoned a Pokemon that was at a type advantage to his own creature, Barry's summoned Water-type had nearly grabbed the Trainer instead. The young man liked almost every Pokemon, even Zubat and Golbat, but the one set of Pokemon the boy simply could not like were Tentacool and Tentacruel. When he was a little boy visiting the beach with his family in Olivine City a washed up Tentacool stung him, and ever since he could not like the seemingly mean-spirited species with its painful venom. As long as the monstrosity was on the field, Lucas would not be a happy person. "Rhyhorn! Horn Attack!"

"Tentacruel! Bubblebeam!" Barry commanded. The rhino-like Pokemon rushed the jellyfish with all its might, but the foaming stream that came from the water-type threw it back and knocked it out instantly.

Lucas wasn't concerned yet. He still had Pokemon that could get the unpleasant creature off of the field as soon as possible. He pulled another ball off his belt and sent his next team member into the fray. All the while watching with mild paranoia that the Tentacruel's tentacles didn't come anywhere near him, "Donna! Psywave!"

The Espeon was a fraction of the size of the giant jellyfish, but in this round Donna more than had the advantage, "Bubblebeam again, Tentacruel!"

Once again the water-type's attack hit its mark directly. Though damaged and slightly slowed, Donna shook off the attack and commanded a wave of spiritual energy that hit the Tentacruel like a wall. The Pokemon twitched and quivered, its tentacles waving wildly as it was knocked out instantly. As far as the tattooed Trainer was concerned, the tide of battle had changed. Donna was speedy, strong and had a massive type advantage. The disorganized, hyperactive Leader had nothing he could throw at Lucas that he wasn't ready for. He wouldn't let those nagging doubts about his abilities persist. He let his call to John re-energize his ambitions. He would no longer let obstacles unnerve him or deflate his confidence.

Or so he thought.

Barry smiled cheerfully as though the previous round didn't affect him at all. He pulled out a second Pokeball and threw it with a hop, "Go Skutank!"

Lucas had never seen this type of Pokemon before. It was large, stocky-looking with a constantly irritated look on its face. The thing the teen noticed the most about this creature was its smell. Even from his vantage point, dozens of feet away from his opponent, Lucas could smell the rank odor coming off of the Pokemon's body. It reminded him of a pair of unwashed sweat socks he had found that had somehow wrapped around an old cheeseburger underneath his bed when cleaning out his room to move to Sinnoh. He was fighting the urge to vomit as he tried to call out an attack to Donna. Donna seemed in no better shape as she pawed at her nose as though it were hurt. There was no doubting this was a poison-type, one that had to get off the field ASAP, "Donna, Psywave again!"

The Espeon shook off the stench and did as she was commanded. Once again the wall of psychic energy came off of the Pokemon's body and slammed directly into the Skutank. The horribly smelling Pokemon yawned, nothing had happened to it. Donna and Lucas looked at each other in mutual confusion. Skutank was obviously a poison-type, why hadn't the attack worked? Barry blinked at his opponent's distress as though once again the teen had missed something painfully obvious, "What are you, stupid or something? Didn't you know psychic moves don't work on dark-types?"

"Of course I know about dark-types, but Skutank is a dark-type? I thought it was a poison-type!" Lucas snarled back.

"It's both. Skutank! Night Slash!" Barry commanded leaping in place and making his scarf bounce around. In an act of speed Lucas thought not possible from a Pokemon the Skutank's size and bulk, the sinister-looking poison-type lunged at the Espeon with claws fully extended. Donna, as well as her Trainer, was caught completely blind-sided as her eyes widened in surprise as blackened gashes appeared in her purple fur. As the stun of the attack wore off, she keeled over in complete exhaustion. The teenager looked frightfully at his opponent. He had seriously underestimated the boy, and his opponent knew it. Without losing his boisterous smile, and in an even tone without being condescending that Lucas somehow found even more irritating than if the boy was being cocky, Barry explained happily, "I know I tend to rush into things and can be very scatterbrained, but my rival and best friend Dawn is the current Champion of the Sinnoh Region, and my father is one of the Frontier Brains. I'm actually one of the strongest Leaders in Sinnoh. Between not knowing about Skutank and not knowing about me, you must be a very stupid and very pitiful Trainer,"

The statement hit Lucas like a knock to the gut. Lucas had been called a lot things in his life by people of authority based off of the failures in academics, athletics, morality and even romance, but not once had anyone accused him of being a lousy Trainer. Arrogant opponents, sure, but Leaders, professors, researchers—even his own brother and the Old Creeper, Major Mathias—had never outright called him bad at Pokemon battles. Any doubts about his skills and knowledge came from within. Yet somehow, this hyperactive kid with his happy-go-lucky attitude's comment jarred and angered the older boy in a way he hadn't felt in a long time, "I'll show you who the stupid Trainer is around here! Go Franky!"

Lucas heaved the Pokeball with all his might as his Gyrados rushed onto the field. The Gym Leader continued to smile cheerfully and without menace as he declared his next attack, "Skutank, Toxic!"

A spray of liquid that smelled even worse than the Skutank's body came from under the Pokemon's tail and hit the sea monster Pokemon directly. It didn't just smell bad as the normally even-tempered Franky roared and thrashed like a normal Gyrados. The water-type had been poisoned badly, and writhed in agony. Lucas spat in anger, he had forgotten to restock on Antidotes, and had no way of curing his Pokemon. He would have to finish the fight before the venom would fully affect his creature. Lucas called out his attack, "Franky, Rage!"

The Pokemon obeyed despite its pain and rushed the Skutank. Finally the other Pokemon had gotten damaged, but nearly enough as he needed. Lucas watched guilt-ridden as the poison continued to torture Franky. Barry ignored the suffering Pokemon and called out another attack, "Skutank, Fury Swipes!"

"Franky, Bite! No wait, that's not right. Rage again!" Lucas' confidence was wavering badly and began second-guessing his decisions. He couldn't think clearly as he watched Franky not only be shredded by the Skutank, but begin drooling from the effects of the toxins in his system. He tried to get a hold of himself. This was just another battle. This was just like any other battle. He had gotten out of tougher scraps. Barry may be a Leader, but he's also just a dippy, easily distracted kid. What did it matter what he thought? He could think on his feet, he tried to reassure himself. Just change tactics, "Franky return! Go Hotrod!"

"Toxic again Skutank!" Lucas' Pokemon was instantly poisoned, but unlike Franky, Hotrod never showed fear, pain or hesitation in a battle. His stoic determination was one of his strongest assets, but even then he showed some sweat on his scales as the Skutank's venom coursed through his veins.

"Franky! Flamewheel!"

"Skutank! Nightslash!" Lucas thought he finally had a handle on the battle. The Skutank was getting worn down, and Hotrod's last attack caused a burn. Now both Pokemon would slowly weaken from their respective injuries. The two Trainers continued to exchange blows, but even with all of Hotrod's grit and determination, he soon succumbed to the poison. Three Pokemon knocked out. Lucas tried to stay calm as Barry continued to stay up-beat, the words the Leader said earlier now playing in a loop in his head. It further unnerved him, he was falling apart, fear, anger and doubt blurring together as each of his Pokemon fell. Even at a type disadvantage Lucas was forced to send out Sparky. He whispered to the Pokeball before sending out his spacey electric ghost, "Sparky, I know you like to goof off during battles, but you just can't do it this time. This thing will knock you out the first chance it gets. Please, for me, so I don't have to watch you get hurt, please focus on the battle!"

Much to Lucas' amazement, Sparky did as it was told and arrived on the field ready for command. The teen had to admire the affection his Pokemon had for him, and was determined not to waste their trust. More damage was done to the Skutank, but in the end Sparky was at just too much of a disadvantage, even when fully focused on the battle. Two Pokemon left. The teen hesitantly summoned Franky back to the field. While the Gyrados was more composed now, it was still in great pain and seeing his sick Pokemon again made Lucas second-guess his decisions. Another two rounds and Franky was down for good, now knocked out the venom no longer harmed the water-type. Only one Pokemon now. All down to Gizmo. Good ol' Gizmo. His first Pokemon, the Pokemon everyone underestimated, the tiny Eevee had saved Lucas from near losses before, it was time to do it again. His composure came back. If Barry thought Lucas had underestimated him as a Leader, he was about to discover how much he underestimated Lucas as well, "Go Gizmo!"

"Skutank, Toxic!" The strategy wouldn't work this time. The nimble, speedy Eevee evaded the attack zipping around the hulking dark-type and diving underground. Finally an advantage, poison-types being weak against ground moves. It also seemed to catch Barry off-guard as well. If Gizmo hits, then the Skutank would be finished. Just like the speedy Lucario from Veilstone's Gym, this Pokemon would go down.

But it was not to be.

In a last second twitch, the Skutank pulled away from the spot that Gizmo had erupted from, completely missing his opponent. The gambit had failed. Barry wasted no time, "Skutank! Flamethrower!"

The Eevee was not the only Pokemon with surprise moves. Once again, Lucas was caught completely off-guard and exposed, just like poor Gizmo. The force of the blast threw the normal-type into the air, before thudding on the ground in a cloud of charred fur. The teen stared at his poor, defeated Pokemon, once again as unconscious as he was when the boy raced to the Pokemon Center in Eterna City, a sight that always sickened Lucas to his core. But it wasn't until Pastoria's Leader began to speak that the gravity of what just happened fully touched Lucas. As Barry spoke in his speedy, jabbering manner, with his wide-eyed expression, it felt like every syllable of his wall of words was a slap across Lucas' face, "It was really impressive with your final Pokemon to have it know Dig like that. But still, I'm really surprised that you've gotten this far in the League. If you were against Crasher Wake you probably wouldn't have even been able to knock out one Pokemon, but like I said, he was a lot better than me. It seems to me if we're being honest, you're not a very good Trainer at all,"

"I-I lost," with that final statement, croaked awkwardly out of his throat, the prideful, cocky young man sank to his knees in defeat.


	26. Chapter 26 Loser

Chapter 26: Loser

"Welcome back, Lucas, how did the Gym match go?" The nurse greeted the teen boy cheerfully as he slunk through the Pokemon Center's doors, but her smile vanished as she immediately saw the boy's crestfallen body language. Lucas had lost. While facing the Pastoria City's Gym Leader, Barry, a specialist in the poison-type, he lost almost his entire team against against the young Leader's Skutank. But worse than that, the Trainer feared he had lost his nerve. Without a word, the young Trainer deposited his defeated team onto the counter and the nurse went to the back to revive them. As the beeps of the Center's machinery treated and healed his Pokemon, Lucas replayed the match in his head over and over, especially the last thing the Leader had said to him before he left.

"You're not a very good Trainer at all," Barry had said those words like a matter-of-fact, obvious statement without a hint of malice or vanity. It was not fight banter, or a statement of frustration or jealousy, like Lucas had encountered against other opponents. It was the experienced opinion declared by a League certified Gym Leader. The boy may have been hyper and strange and scatterbrained, but his words managed to poison Lucas' confidence as badly as his Skutank poisoned Lucas' team.

The nurse finally returned with his six Pokeballs on a tray, with a seventh ball in her hands, "Your Pokemon are just fine now, Lucas, as good as new. And I got the test results back on Stella. She's just fine, there isn't a thing wrong with her. Isn't that great news?"

"Yeah, thanks." Lucas replied curtly. While he was relieved his Buneary wasn't sick, it still wasn't good news for him. It meant that her behavior was his fault. He had done something wrong to make her behave badly, to scream and cry and lash out whenever he sent her into battle or tried to hold her like he did his other Pokemon. It was another sign that what Barry had said was right. Without another word to the nurse, the Trainer stopped by the PC system before leaving the Center.

_You're not a very good Trainer at all._

It was late afternoon when the clouds opened up above Pastoria City and the Great Marsh and rain fell in huge, cold drops. Morgan scrambled to the Pokemon Center clutching a camouflage-patterned Pokeball with a huge grin on her face. Her jet-black hair drooped slightly and there were streaks of mud on her face and legs but the normally dour teenage girl was on top of the world. She had finally captured the scorpion-like Pokemon, Skoropi. While it was only a poison-and-bug type now, with diligent training and hard work, it would evolve into a poison-and-dark type, the perfect addition to her hypothetical Gym team. She was so elated that she didn't even bother to cover herself from the rain, and ran to the Center to show Lucas her achievement. However, as she looked around the Pokemon Center's lobby, he was nowhere to be seen. Was he still at the Gym? Curious, Morgan approached the nurse and inquired about her rival, "Excuse me nurse, have you seen Lucas around?"

"He was here a few hours ago after his Gym match, he hasn't been back since," the nurse replied sadly.

Morgan raised an eyebrow at the Pokemon Center employee's tone, "What happened with the Gym match?"

"Apparently he lost. Such a shame. Lucas may look like such a tough guy, but I could tell he's one of those people who really loves his Pokemon. It's always such a disappointment to lose," the nurse sighed.

The dark-trainer suddenly understood and pulled out her poncho and umbrella. Heading back into the foul weather, she decided to locate Lucas.

Lucas stared at the sky absently, lost in thought and self-evaluation. He was lying down on a picnic table beneath one of Pastoria's many shelters in a small day park, now mostly abandoned as the weather worsened. The teen managed to keep mostly dry as the fat drops of rain created a rhythmic pinging against the shelter's plexiglass roof. The tattooed young man thought about the first day of kindergarten and how the teacher gushed over him because three years earlier she had John in her class, and how smart he was, that was such a fast learner, and how much she loved having him. Then those frowns of disappointment she would give him as Lucas struggled to memorize the alphabet, or would always write his sevens backwards. She would smile weakly as Lucas worked his heart out and always fall short. And she would always say the same thing as she handed back those cheery-looking worksheets that were marked mercilessly with red pen, "I guess you aren't much like John, after all. How disappointing,"

Then when Lucas was six, his parents signed him up for peewee soccer, ending up with the same coach that had trained John. At first he was thrilled to have John's little brother on the team. John was a star shooter and always had his eyes on the ball. But then Lucas could never kick the ball as far or as accurately, and the other kids could knock him down so easier as he tried to fight for the ball. When the coach didn't think Lucas or his parents were listening, he would take off his cap and shake his head, "This kid's no second John, that's for sure. What a damn disappointment,"

Teachers, coaches, parents, councilors—everyone in a position of authority had always told Lucas what a disappointment he was. It didn't matter how hard he tried or how much he worked, he could never measure up, especially not against John. He tried to tell himself that it didn't matter, and then John became a Pokemon Trainer and cold reality and all his failures ripped Lucas' self esteem, and seemingly his soul, apart. All Lucas ever wanted was to be good at something, just for once not to disappoint everyone in his life. He thought he finally found a place for himself, after all these years, as a Pokemon Trainer. The one thing he ever really wanted to be. It was a dream come true. But now, yet another person in authority said straight to his face what a disappointment he was. And as Lucas looked back at all his Gym matches he began to realize he didn't win a single one of his badges because he was good, but because he was lucky. Gardenia because of her fear of ghosts, Roark because Franky evolved at the right time, and Fantina and Maylene because Gizmo was his trump card. And now his luck had finally run out. Cold reality set in again; he would never be anything more than a two-bit thug. But even that was a life he no longer wanted.

"Hey," a voice interrupted the soothing monotone of the rain. Without getting up he glanced over to see Morgan wearing a poncho that was patterned after an Umbreon, holding a dark purple umbrella.

"Hey," Lucas replied unenthusiastically.

"Sorry to hear about losing. It always sucks," Morgan stated sympathetically. She approached the shelter to get out of the rain, but Lucas didn't get up, "So when are you going to challenge him again?"

"I'm not."

Morgan scowled, "What do you _mean_ you're not?"

With a decisive effort, Lucas forced himself a slouched sitting position, "You weren't there, you didn't see what happened. The things he said totally psyched me out. I've never had that happen before. He kept calling me stupid and all sorts of other stuff,"

"I assumed you'd be used to that by now," Morgan stated casually.

The tattooed teen shot the girl a glare, but continued anyway, "This is different. If he was just a normal kid I'd nail his hide to the wall. But he's not. He's a _Gym Leader_, a representative of the Pokemon League. When he said I was a lousy Trainer it was like every single person that had ever called me useless or disappointing or bad my entire life was right there in the room with him. I completely lost my nerve, and because of that I completely screwed over my team. And now that I look back I can even see Barry was right! I have gotten every single one of my badges because of a lucky move. A last second miracle. I know if I ever face him again I'll completely shut down,"

"Lucas, you have to beat this Gym. How do you expect to get to Victory Road if you can't get your eight badges?" Morgan seemed infuriated.

"I don't know. I don't know what to do anymore. But I just can't face him. I love Pokemon more than anything, and all being a Trainer is all I ever wanted, but my team deserves a Trainer who actually knows what he's doing. I mean, I can't even figure out what to do about my Buneary. The nurse says her health is normal,"

"Wait. That Pokemon you said that hatched and was acting weird was a Buneary?"

"Yeah." Lucas added curtly. He lied back down on the table and started staring at the sky again, "I am so sick of always being the loser."

"Pussy!" Morgan roared. She grabbed the Pokeball belt from Lucas' waist and the ball from his neck before slamming him in the stomach with her fist.

Lucas shot up with a cough and wrapped his arms around his tender stomach, "Jesus Christ! Is this you trying to cheer me up?"

"What do you expect me to say? 'Buck up, little soldier, everything is going to be okay?' Well, I'm not going to do that. Because it's not okay. Not when you are acting like a complete and total pussy!" Morgan snarled, holding Lucas' Pokemon away from him, "You lost. Big freaking deal. Everyone loses. Even the Champions lose. You think people walk up to Red and say, 'Hey, that's the guy Gold beat?' No, they say 'That's Red, the former goddamn Champion of the Kanto League!'"

"It's not about losing! It's about an expert telling me that I'm wasting my time and my Pokemon!" Lucas snarled back. He was seriously considering hitting Morgan in that large nose of hers.

"Just because someone is a Gym Leader doesn't mean they know a damn thing about anything. I know that because I can tell you about some Leaders who don't know their head from their asses, firsthand. A Leader is just someone who is qualified in a _type_. They are not experts about training or Trainers. I think you are one of the dumbest, stubbornest, person with the least likable personality I've ever met, but I also know for a fact that you are a good Trainer. Not a _great _Trainer, but a good Trainer with a lot of potential. You think fast and you care about your Pokemon more than you care about your own safety. You have four badges. No one can possibly get four badges on luck alone. Even idiot Leaders set their teams in such a way that accounts for type weaknesses and disadvantages so they don't accidentally lose to rookie strategies,"

"But my Buneary-"

"Buneary are scared of humans. It's a natural instinct, and their defense mechanism when they are scared is to throw a tantrum. This is why a Buneary's strongest attack is Frustration. Your Buneary is acting the way it is because it wants to trust you because you were there since its birth, but its instinct is to be terrified of you. It takes a lot of care and training to get a Buneary to be happy to be around you. A lot of people don't know that and only keep them because they are cute. You didn't do anything wrong," Morgan pulled the balls off of Lucas' belt and threw them to the ground, summoning the boy's entire team in front of him. Gizmo, Donna, Franky, Hotrod, Sparky and even his new Rhyhorn circled him and nudged him with their faces and paws. Despite the ordeal they had gone through at the Gym, they all looked happy to see their owner, and concerned over his sulking state. Morgan also pulled out her own Pokevice from her purse and shoved it towards the teen with the Mohawk, "Your Pokemon love and trust you. If you think you're not good enough for them, fine. If you're going to not try again against Barry and are just going to quit here and now, then you might as well call your brother and tell him you're coming home. Go ahead and prove him right. Prove to the guy you hate so much, the guy you claim is such a fake and took your only interest without a single thought towards his little brother, was right and you're nothing more than a quitter and loser who puts all his problems on everyone else,"

As Lucas stared at the Pokevice he remembered the conversation he had with John just before he came to Pastoria. How John was so sure that Lucas would just give up because things got too hard. Wasn't the part of the reason for his Journey to prove all those people wrong? That he wasn't this utter failure? Barry did exactly what Lucas hated most: he made an assumption about him. The ghosts of those who doubted them had to die, and they were going to die in the Pastoria Gym. He promised himself a life of no more doubts. Time and time again he broke his word and considered quitting. This would be the final time. John or no John. Rain or no rain. Police, Team Cosmic, twerpy leaders, hell, even if at this point if he broke his neck. No. More. Doubts. It won't end until he stands before John with four certifications of Championship, and Gizmo and the rest of his team take John's Pokemon down, "You get good at things you love, you don't love things because you are good at them. Professor Oak told me that. You may be a tactless bitch, Morgan, but you are one hundred percent right. I need to man up. Big time. So, thanks,"

Morgan shrugged as she tossed Lucas' belt back to him, "Quitters piss me off. It's like giving into whatever bad happened to you. And I refuse to do that. Not after what happened to my dad."

Lucas finally pulled himself of the picnic table and called his team back, replacing his belt and necklace to their proper locations. In a final act of mercy, the girl tossed the umbrella to the boy and the returned to the Pokemon Center for the evening. The next day, the young man replanning his strategy. Over the next several days Lucas trained harder than he had in a very long time. Even if it was raining he would scour the marshes for opponents and opportunities to get stronger. He visited the Great Marsh and caught several new Pokemon including a Croagunk and a Tropius. Five days after his first time against Barry, he was ready. Almost a week after facing the Leader the first time, Lucas returned to the poorly kept Gym with its lose wires and sprawled construction materials.

"Hey Barry, I'm back!" Lucas announced fiercely. He didn't quite have all his confidence back yet, but he was determined to not quit, no matter what. Even if he would have to challenge this Gym every day for a month straight, he would beat this boy.

The scatter-brained Leader greeted his opponent brightly, "Welcome back! I gotta say though, I'm pretty surprised to see you again. I did sort of wipe the floor with you,"

"Shut up, short stack. School's back in session. Last time I was here you accused me of not being a good Trainer. Well, I'm here to show that I'm not the only one guilty of some pretty grave underestimation. So bring it on, twerp, 'cause I ain't leaving here without my badge."


	27. Chapter 27 Rematch

Chapter 27: Rematch

Once again Lucas stood across from Barry in the half constructed Gym of Pastoria City. Barry waited with his bright smile and boundless energy while Lucas glared back with gritty determination. The first time these two had faced each other, Lucas had been unprepared. He had no idea of Barry's type specialty or his battle strategy. Though he had lost badly the last time the two faced each other, to a point where Lucas doubted everything about himself, through that loss he had gained a great advantage. Gym Leaders were forced to use a registered team of Pokemon that could not change from battle to battle. Trainers could change their Pokemon teams as often as it pleased them. Barry had assumed Lucas was a poor Trainer because he had underestimated the Leader, but Barry had no idea just how much _he_ underestimated the stubborn, temperamental Trainer from Cherrygrove City.

"I won't go through my spiel again because you've already faced me, but don't forget, I'm no pushover! So make sure you don't make the same mistakes again," Barry quipped with his cheery butter-won't-melt-in-my-mouth tone.

"I promise you, I don't intend on it," Lucas replied darkly.

"Good, because you don't want to come off as worse of a Trainer than you already are," Barry pulled off his Pokeball and with a flutter of his scarf sent his first Pokemon to the field, "Go Tentacruel!"

And once again, the jellyfish Pokemon appeared on the field, causing the scar on Lucas' chest to tingle from the memory of the sting from his childhood, and further motivation for fast and humiliating defeat fueled the sixteen-year-old Trainer. Pulling the Pokeball off of his belt the boy called out his own Pokemon, "Go Sparky!"

The Rotom arrived fully focused on the battle. Lucas wasn't sure if it was because Sparky had finally gotten over his bad habit of wandering around in the middle of a battle until called to attack, or simply it understood how important this battle was to its Trainer. Barry attempted to confuse the Rotom with his Tentacruel's Confuse Ray, but Sparky's cheery obliviousness acted like a natural defense against the attack. It only took one electric-based attack to send the poisonous sea monster into unconsciousness. The teen knew what was coming next, and had a more powerful strategy prepared. In addition to its lack of many weaknesses, Barry's Pokemon put the tank in Skutank. Like the last battle, Barry's upbeat personality didn't waver and summoned his next Pokemon to the field, "Go Skutank!"

"Sparky. Great job pal, but it's time to hit the bench. Return!" the tattooed boy called back his electric ghost and pulled a second ball off of his belt, "Okay, Hotrod, time for Phase 1!"

The large cat-like dark-type glared at the stoic fire lizard. Hotrod wanted redemption and revenge for defeat just as badly as Lucas did, and studied his opponent carefully. He trusted his Trainer to have a plan and waited eagerly for a command. Barry seemed oblivious to the determined clenching of the jaws that both Trainer and the Pokemon shared as he announced his first attack, "Skutank, Toxic!"

"Flamewheel!" Lucas replied. Once again the Charmeleon was hit with full force by the poison Pokemon's toxin, and once again, refused to let the pain affect him. He gripped his claws into the ground and waited for Lucas to call out again. "Flamewheel! Again!"

"Fury Swipes!"

"Flamewheel again!" Lucas repeated the command again and again until the result he waited for occurred. With Hotrod's low health, his Blaze ability kicked in, making his fire attacks more powerful and finally, like their first battle, the Skutank suffered a burn. Now the massive Pokemon would weaken each turn, regardless if Lucas' attacks would hit or not, "That's what we were looking for, Hotrod, that's enough for now! Go! Gabite!"

Over the several days that Lucas had been training, he had added the Gible he caught in a cave outside of Oreburg to his team. The dragon-ground type evolved into Gabite, and became a speedy fighter, that like the Skutank, had very few weaknesses. However, what counted most was that against the Skutank, it had the advantage. Barry's cheery demeanor seemed to shift slightly to his wide-eyed amazement, the look he had when he discovered something new, "Hmm. A Gabite. I had no idea you had something like that. Are you sure you can handle it?"

"You have no idea what I can handle. Gabite! Dig!" Lucas roared as the ground-dragon dove underground as easily as if it was leaping into a pool. The slower Skutank looked around, trying to anticipate where the Pokemon would appear, all the while weakening as Hotrod's burn took its toll. Suddenly the Gabite exploded from the ground, pounding directly into the poison-type. The Skutank teetered slightly, rocking back and forth to try to catch its balance before falling over with a thud that caused a pile of paint cans to topple over. "Yes! That sucker is _down_!"

Despite his Pokemon's defeat, Barry continued baring his big, happy smile. He summoned back his Skutank, "It's really amazing how you didn't learn a single thing since your last battle with me. I told you not to underestimate me. Boy, you really are a dumb Trainer. Go! Toxicroak!"

Lucas had been so sidelined by the Skutank during his last fight, that it hadn't even occurred to him that his battle with the Gym Leader would involve a third Pokemon. It was a setback, but even so, the teen was not discouraged. In case something went wrong with Gabite, the teen had a backup plan. He met the Leader's grin with his own, "Boy, you really are a dumb Leader. I told you not to underestimate me either. Go Haunter!"

The boy summoned his next Pokemon. This was another of the Pokemon he had trained during his preparations for the rematch, the Ghastly that he caught in the same Chateau he caught Sparky. Like the Gible, after their practice sessions the Pokemon had evolved. And now both the Haunter and her Trainer shared the same mischievous grin. It would be poison-type versus poison-type, but with one major difference: the fighting aspect of Toxicroak would have no effect against the ghostly Haunter. Even so, Barry's bemused grin widened even further, "Suckerpunch!"

"Curse!" Lucas could have anticipated that the Leader's Pokemon would know a non-type attack, but in this case there was no problem. The Haunter lifted high above the reach of the giant toxic frog and completely avoided the attack. A specter of a giant voodoo needle appeared before the ghost, before plunging itself deep into the Haunter's astral body. While it seemed like it was in intense pain from the self-inflicted stabbing, it was the Toxicroak that seemed to bear the most of the damage. Now every turn the poison-and-fighting type would get weaker and weaker, just like it was burned or poisoned. But Lucas wasn't done yet. In the next round Barry once again attempted to damage the now very weakened ghost-type, and once again the Toxicroak missed. This gave the teen Trainer an opportunity to strike another damaging blow, "Haunter! Will o' Whisp!"

A symbolic fire appeared between the ghost's disembodied hands and shot towards the Toxicroak, hitting its mark with ease. Now in addition to the pain of the curse, the fighting frog would suffer a burn as well. For the first time in the two meetings the Trainers had, Barry began to look serious, "Suckerpunch!"

This time the attack hit its target, finally knocking the Haunter painfully to the ground. Lucas praised his Pokemon for her work and pulled the next Pokeball off of his belt, "Go Donna!"

Barry's expression fell to disbelief again, but true disbelief this time, not the amused surprise that Lucas had found so irritating before. Though the Toxicroak used more of its Sucker Punches with its dark-type advantage, the conclusion of the Gym match was all but written in stone. The victory of this match would go to Lucas, and as the Toxicroak slumped to the floor after one of the Espeon's Psybeam attacks, it was the younger boy's turn to sink to his knees in stunned defeat, "How could this happen? You were so terrible the first time! But I lost. I lost against you,"

Lucas drank in this victory more than he had any match before. It wasn't just the feeling of satisfaction that came from winning, or even the thrill of watching the motormouth, hyper Leader be at a loss for words. No, the greatest feeling that came from this battle, this, his fifth Gym victory and his soon-to-be received badge was the wave of relief and weight off of his chest that came from being reassured of his skills. Morgan, Maylene and all the other people who critiqued his battles were right. He was not a great Trainer, at least not yet, not this early is his Journey, but he was a very good one. He did understand type advantages and battle strategy, and his battles were all his own style. But even when he was winning against Barry, there was a tiny gnawing fear in his gut that the Leader may do something to train-wreck his plan and Lucas would still lose. That gnawing was gone now and the teen Trainer from Cherrygrove felt like even if he ever lost again, be it against Trainer, Leader of Elite Four member, that doubt would never come back. It finally felt like the new path he set for himself was real.

The Mowhawked boy was about to say something to the still dumbfounded Leader when a low, gruff voice called out to Barry first, "Barry!"

In the main doorway of the disheveled Gym stood a massive man who was both very tall and incredibly stocky. His most distinguishing feature was the wrestler's mask that covered his face, and through this mask he seemed incredibly irate. Like their were springs on his knees, Barry popped back up to his feet, "Crasher Wake!"

"Barry, haven't you learned a single thing from me! I told you I didn't want to be your mentor, I told you I didn't think you were ready to be a Gym Leader, but you begged and you pleaded and you showed me you were serious about being a League recognized Leader. So I finally relent and take you under my wing and teach you everything I knew about being an honorable Gym Leader. I come to check in on you and see how my old Gym is doing, the Gym I built up after years of dedication and practice of Water Pokemon between my wrestling. And then what do I hear? I hear a Leader tell a Trainer, a Trainer who clearly treats his Pokemon with love and respect and works very hard, that he just about has no right to be a Trainer," Crasher Wake stormed over to the small, skinny adolescent, who now hung his head sadly as he took in his hero's rant, "I couldn't be more ashamed of you unless I learned you started abusing your own Pokemon,"

"But Crasher Wake-" Barry started to mumble, the boy now a complete one-eighty from his personality.

"No Leader, and I mean no Leader, has the right to criticize a Trainer just because that Leader defeated him. This is what separates a Junior Trainer from a Leader. Junior Trainers still believe in that ridiculous battle banter and head games to win. Leaders are supposed to rely on skill alone, to represent their type specialty and the Pokemon League with honor and dignity. What if your criticisms got this Trainer to quit? What if you discouraged some up and coming talent along the way? This Gym has been open for almost a year now, it frightens me not only how horrible this place still looks, but the idea of how many dreams you killed because you still haven't learned to think before you speak!"

By all accounts, Lucas should have enjoyed watching Barry squirm. To see this Leader who had humiliated him and make him feel so badly that he began to doubt everything about himself, look like a beaten puppy as Crasher Wake chastised him, Lucas should have been laughing his ass off. But much to his own surprise, Lucas actually felt bad for the boy, "Hey, cut him some slack,"

Crasher Wake turned away from yelling at Barry to raise a skeptical eyebrow towards who he perceived as the victim in this fight, "Weren't you insulted by Barry and what he said?"

"Hell yeah I was insulted. And you were right too, I almost quit because of him. But he's also a kid, and still new at the Leader stuff. Are you saying that when you first started this Gym you did everything perfectly?" Lucas asked, still shocked he was coming to the aid of someone who no less than six days ago made him question his very existence.

"Of course not," Crasher Wake conceded.

"He made a mistake. Just like I made a bunch of mistakes in my first battle against him. And even if I would have quit, that'd still be my fault and not his. Not being able to handle loss and criticism? That's something every Trainer has to deal with, even Champions. Barry definitely messed up, but yelling as much as you are is as bad as what he was doing to me. Just sayin'," Lucas added with a shrug.

The large wrestler's mood softened as he considered the teen's statements. He turned to Barry, "This kid's got a point. You're still getting the hang of this, but don't do it again,"

Barry looked so relieved that he seemed like he was about to cry, "Thank you Crasher Wake, sir, I won't do it again, sir!" The boy then walked up to Lucas and lost all control of his emotions and began to bawl, "Lucas, I'm so sorry I called you stupid and a terrible Trainer and have stupid-looking hair,"

"You never said I had stupid-looking-"

"Well, I thought it," Barry continued to snuffle, using his scarf like a handkerchief. Lucas could only roll his eyes at the pitiful-looking kid, "But you beat me fair and square, and you really are a good Trainer. You messed up the first time but you came back with a really clever strategy and so I reward you the Fen Badge. With it Pokemon up to level 50 will obey you and you'll be able to Surf on Pokemon outside of battle,"

Lucas looked over the badge that seemed more suited for a Water Gym than a poison one, "Are you sure that this is the right badge?"

Barry slumped his shoulders and sighed, "On top of the Gym being a mess, the League still hasn't sent me my new badges. They are supposed to be Venom badges, but I have to keep giving Crasher Wake's old ones in the meantime. Oh, I also want to give you the TM for Poison Jab. It's a really strong move,"

Lucas took his prize money and TM and looked back on the spastic Leader one last time, "See you around Barry. But don't forget about what you learned today. If Crasher Wake can't beat some sense into you, I can,"

The teen Trainer stepped outside of the poorly lit, half-constructed Gym and breathed in a lung full of the warm, humid air that wafted through Pastoria City. It felt like it was about to rain again and Lucas almost didn't care. As he headed back towards the Pokemon Center, he noticed one of the Pokeballs on his belt was glowing. He summoned out Hotrod and noticed his body glowing and growing like it did in Eterna City. A pair of massive wings and long horns appeared and when the light faded, Lucas' Charmeleon became a Charizard. Lucas stood in awe of his new Pokemon as it blew a celebratory flame into the sky. Despite the glory and dignity the stoic Pokemon exuded, Lucas couldn't resist throwing his arms around the Charizard's neck and hugged it close. Hotrod returned the affection by nuzzling his massive head against his Trainer's check. Lucas remembered the day he met the tiny Charmander, one of the gifts from Professor Oak. As the teen boy continued to hold onto his Pokemon and thought about what he had gone through in the past week, he realized it was moments like this, more than anything, that made the Journey, and life, worthwhile.


	28. Chapter 28 Party at Backlot's

Chapter 28: Party at Backlot's

Lucas strode triumphantly into the Pokemon Center, marching towards Morgan who was petting her new Skoropi that was contently snoozing in her lap. The wild-haired dark Trainer looked up leisurely at her Mohawked rival, "So does this mean you got your badge this time?"

With a beaming sneer, the teen boy flipped the badge towards the girl like a coin, his new Fen badge landing on the couch next to her. The first time Lucas fought against Pastoria City's Gym Leader, Barry, the teen had lost. Not only that, the Leader's expression of disappointment over Lucas' skills had left the boy questioning whether or not to continue as a Trainer, as his confidence against refacing the Gym Leader was totally shot. After Morgan's own brand of pep-talk, Lucas faced his demon of never living up to anyone's expectations and after vigorous training and planning, the young man faced the Leader again. This time Lucas' new-found confidence and planning had worked, and he defeated Barry, earning his fifth badge.

With a smile of her own Morgan added, "That's more like it. No more acting like a pussy, right?"

"Nope. Those days are over. I know it for sure this time," Lucas grabbed the badge back and stuck it in his badge case before heading to the counter to heal his victorious team, "And I'm pumped to head for the next Gym,"

"Well, don't count for that next Gym to be in Sunnyshore, the road's _still_ closed," Morgan groaned, "That means I still can't catch a ferry to Hoenn,"

"What? But that means it's been closed for over a week now, right? What could possible be that wrong with the power grid in Sunnyshore to shut down the road in or out of the city for over a week?" Lucas commented with surprise as the nurse handed back his now-healed Pokemon.

"I have no idea. But that means I'm stuck in Sinnoh with nothing to do but wait. I guess I'll go to this party after all," the teen girl said in an exasperated sigh.

"What party?" Without answering, Morgan reached into her purse, pulled out an off-white card embossed with silver letters and handed to Lucas. The boy read the pretentious-looking invitation:

_Miss Morgan, former Champion of the Johto League and one guest are invited to Mr. Backlot's annual Trainer Appreciation Ball._

According to the card, the date of the ball was today. Lucas handed back the invitation and Morgan unceremoniously stuffed it back into her purse, "I normally hate these kinds of things. They are always super boring and you're surrounded by these pretentious, rich Trainers who don't even do most of their own training and you have to listen to them drone on and try to impress you, while all the while you're trying not to punch them in their stupid, rich faces. The upshot is that you sometimes see some really cool Pokemon and the food is really good. Normally I wouldn't even consider going, but I figure I rather be bored and chowing down on good food than be bored and rely on Pokemon Center vending machines," Morgan then asked Lucas a question that very much surprised him, "Want to come with?"

Lucas crossed his arms and smirked, "First you help me with the Gym Leader and now you're inviting me to be your date for this party. Are you sure you aren't just a little bit attracted to me? A lot of girls do find the whole bad-boy thing pretty sexy,"

"It's not a date, dumbass, I figured it'd be less boring to go with someone who I know. And like I told you before, you are not my type," she then added harshly, "I do _not_ like redheads,"

Lucas shrugged, "Suit yourself. So where is this Backlot place, anyway?"

"Just south of Hearthome,"

"And how do you expect to get there in time. From here to Hearthome is like a three day walk,"

Morgan rolled her eyes, "It's amazing that you can be this good a Trainer and at the same time be this stupid. Remember how I said how I got here from Celestic Town? I flew here on my Honchrow. I intend to fly to Hearthome and then walk to the party,"

Lucas felt his cheeks warm slightly, "Oh. Right. That makes sense. Except none of my Pokemon know Fly yet,"

"Why doesn't that surprise me? Well, I've been doing you so many favors recently anyway, you might as well fly with me, too,"

Flying on the back of a Pokemon was an amazing experience for Lucas. The Sinnoh region below rushed by as the wind blew on his face. Morgan's Honchrow's wings flapped steadily in a soothing rhythm. The teen boy assumed he might be at least a little bit scared, having never even flown on an airplane before, but he didn't feel an ounce of fear, just exhilaration. Within an hour, the two teens had arrived in Hearthome, a city now filled with memories both good and bad for the male Trainer. The two stopped at the Pokemon Center first to change, as the invitation requested formal or semi-formal attire. This proved problematic for Lucas as he owned no article of clothing that fit that description. After several minutes of consideration, the teen boy settled on his white band t-shirt and one of his less baggy pair of pants. To compensate for his own attire, Lucas found a scrap of fabric and tied it around Gizmo's neck like a bow-tie and set his loyal Pokemon on his shoulder again.

Lucas waited for several minutes in the Pokemon Center lobby for Morgan. She finally came out of the woman's dormitory and the young man had to admit she looked rather nice. She was wearing a long black dress with glittering silver sequins and opera-length black gloves. She had toned down her heavy makeup to make her eyes look wider and her lips smaller. Her black hair was still wildly teased and voluminous, but she had taken the large hair bow out. When she looked at what Lucas was wearing, she seemed appalled, "Do you just not understand what formal means?"

"Hey, this bag..." Lucas lifted up his duffel bag for demonstration, "...Contains all my worldly possessions. And when you carry around absolutely everything you own it's not always possible to pick up extra things like tuxedos when you also have to haul around every article of clothing, cookware and personal items you possess, too. At least this shirt has sleeves,"

"I guess for you that _is_ formal," Morgan shifted her attention to the Eevee on the boy's shoulder, "At least Gizmo looks pretty dapper,"

Finally ready, the two headed for Backlot and the Trainer Appreciation Ball. As Morgan had said, Backlot's Mansion was just south of Hearthome City, and only took a twenty-minute walk to get there. The place was not difficult to find, for not only was the millionaire's palatial mansion visible from almost a mile away, but the closer they got to the house the more decorations and party-goers they ran into. Though the bulk of the gala was intended to be inside the giant building, it appeared Backlot invited so many Trainers that the party spilled out into the grounds. Though it didn't quite seem as bad as Morgan had described, Lucas still felt badly out of place. It wasn't just because he seemed to be the only person in a t-shirt, but he got the feeling that he would have next to nothing in common with the other guests. He could understand Morgan not wanting to go alone, and seeing the well-dressed Trainers chatting eloquently with one and other, Lucas didn't want to wander too far from Morgan, either.

Once at the main gates, Morgan handed her invitation to the guard who looked over Lucas with a roll of his eyes but let the two in anyway. Lucas was still considering turning around and going back to Hearthome but hunger encouraged him to stay and at least check out the buffet first. For all the pretentiousness of the guests and decorations, the food was amazingly low-key. Though there were high-end options such as fine cheeses and French hor'dourves, there was also a large selection of more pedestrian fare such as huge slices of pizza and grilled bratwurst. What Morgan had promised was true, the food was amazingly good, some of the best he had ever tasted. And once he had his fill on his favorites, he became more adventurous and began to sample some of the things he didn't recognize.

After several minutes, a group of cute maids in frilly uniforms gathered the attention of the attendees and pointed out to the top of a grand staircase where a very heavyset, jovial man was waving to the Trainers below, "Hello ladies and gentlemen! Thank you all for coming to my annual Trainer's Appreciation Ball. This party is the highlight of my year. I am Mr. Backlot. As many of you know, I love Pokemon with all my heart. I built this mansion in such a way that Pokemon could comfortably and safely wander my property, and that the Trainers of Pokemon could be welcomed and honored for the work they do. I have not met many of you, but you have been invited here because you have reputations for being excellent Trainers and former Champions. I hope this gala is a true 'thank you' from me to you for your achievements, and that you truly enjoy it here. And with that I officially open the party. Now everyone, have fun and dig in!"

A roar of applause broke out over Backlot's speech as a sea of confetti came down from the ceiling. With the toast over, the guests returned to mingling, though Lucas' uncomfortable feeling returned again. The Trainer froze in surprise when an unfamiliar voice called out his name, "Excuse me, Lucas!"

Lucas spun on his heels to be greeted with a short, skinny, middle-aged man wearing a lab coat and think glasses. He adjusted his massive glasses to give Lucas a better look, "You are Lucas, aren't you? Professor Oak described you to me, but one never can be too sure,"

"Yeah, I'm Lucas, who are you?"

"Oh, I'm sorry, I'm Professor Oak's Aide. The professor asked if I saw you to give you this," the man reached into her lab coat and pulled out an object that looked like a CD, "This is the Hidden Machine for the move Fly. Professor Oak figured you would probably want this so you don't have to waste so much time traveling. It's lucky I ran into you here. Well, enjoy the party,"

And with that the man melted back into the crowd leaving Lucas with the HM. Though the encounter was slightly strange, the Trainer was happy to receive the gift from the professor. This meant he could use one of his own Pokemon to fly as freely as he did on Morgan's Honchrow. Speaking of Morgan, Lucas made his way over to rescue her. An obnoxious looking man with a handlebar mustache was trying to convince her how useless dark-types were, and Morgan looked about ready to kill him, "Hey, can I talk to you for a second?"

Morgan looked relieved to be pulled out of the conversation and the two wandered back to the food table when the girl's grim expression returned. Lucas had always figured Morgan didn't like just about everyone, and just was in a bad mood all the time. The expression Morgan bore now was nothing compared to all those other 'bad moods'. If looks could kill, several dozen people around would have dropped dead. She said venomously, "Goddamit! Not him!"

Lucas had been so focused on Morgan's poisonous new facial expression it hadn't dawned on him to check what she had actually been staring at to bring on the mood. A young man, in his late teens, had just entered the main hallway to Backlot's party. He wore a black suit with black shirt and white tie, which gave the vague impression of him being a gangster. He had shoulder-length, rust-colored, red hair that framed his thin pale face. He seemed like an impatient kind of person, as though everything he did was far more important than anyone else. Lucas joked, "What is he, an ex-boyfriend?"

"Hell no!" Morgan hissed as she slowly backed away from the table, darting her eyes from side to side as though she were looking for an escape route, "Listen. If he comes over here, you don't know me, you've never heard of me. Got it?"

Before Lucas could say anything, Morgan had already vanished, leaving him completely abandoned in the sea of well-dressed, well-mannered Trainers whom he had nothing in common with. As the teen boy cursed the girl out under his breath, the redheaded young man who made Morgan flee approached him, "Excuse me, have you seen a girl around here? About nineteen years old, very full lips, teased black hair,"

"Nope, I'm pretty sure I'd remember seeing someone that trashy-looking around here," Lucas said as loudly as possible, hoping the girl would hear as punishment for abandoning him.

"Thank you anyway," the boy said with a sigh and slumped his shoulders sadly. Soon after, he too melted back into the crowd and disappeared. Morgan, however, did not return, leaving Lucas to once again curse her out. Now with only Gizmo for company Lucas considered finally leaving the party. He had more than enough to eat, and didn't want to be so classless as to stuff his pockets with food for later. He had never been in a mansion before, so he figured before heading out he'd look around and see how the other half lived.

Much to his disappointment, most of the mansion's doors were locked, probably as means to prevent theft and the snooping the teen Trainer was now attempting. The only unlocked room was an area that looked like a library or study, and though the door was open, the area was still cordoned off by a red velvet rope. This was especially disheartening as this room seemed the most interesting. From what Lucas could see, in addition to the shelves stuffed with books were fossils, artifacts and dozens of other things that piqued his curiosity. He considered sneaking in unnoticed, but when a burly looking security guard stepped next to the door, the last of Lucas' hopes were dashed. Full, abandoned and bored, Lucas made his way to leave.

"Want to make one last swing by the buffet, there, Gizmo?" Lucas asked the Eevee on his shoulder, "Speak now or forever hold your peace, because I'm done with this place,"

Gizmo didn't seem to respond. The teen boy turned his face towards his Pokemon. There was something very wrong with the Eevee. Gizmo was focused intently on something, his tiny claws digging into Lucas' shoulder and his ears twitching frantically. This wasn't like in Hearthome City when Gizmo became smitten with Donna and couldn't take his eyes off of her. There was no joy or curiosity in the normal-type. This was panic and fear.

Lucas took the Eevee off of his neck and held the Pokemon in his hands. He looked around to see what could possibly be stressing his creature so badly. All he saw was a crowd of Trainers, none particularly standing out. He didn't recognize any Team Cosmic members, and he didn't notice any body language that suggested a guilty pickpocket or agitated youths about to start a fight. There were a few loose Pokemon wandering around with their Trainers, but he doubted this was Gizmo's problem, after all, the Eevee never had any issue with any Pokemon before. The Eevee seemed to get worse, squirming fearfully in Lucas' grasp and crying out in unhappy little barks. Lucas was beginning to get very worried now, "Buddy, what's up? What's wrong?"

"Oh isn't that sweet, taking care of your girlfriend's Pokemon for her," Lucas turned to face a slim young man, only slightly taller than himself wearing a white suit, shirt and tie. He had dark brown hair, combed back stylishly with a condescending smile on his face and a vapid looking girl hanging on his arm. Gizmo stopped screaming and squirming, and was now pressed against Lucas' chest, trying to make himself as small as possible. He wasn't entirely sure why, but Lucas instinctively hated this boy, and it wasn't just because he was a pretentious asshole.

"No, Gizmo's my Pokemon," Lucas replied curtly, sizing the boy up.

"That's nice. Eevee are quite rare and can be useful if you do it right. Did you just get it?"

"No. I've had him for a few months now," Lucas stated again without any emotion. Gizmo was trembling so badly now the Trainer was worried he wasn't have a seizure.

"And you haven't evolved him yet? Boy, you must be an _excellent_ Trainer," The young man commented sarcastically. The woman on his arm and several formally dressed Trainers behind him began laughing haughtily. The man's smile increased from the approval of his joke.

"For your information, Gizmo can't evolve. And that's fine by me," Lucas decided he had enough. He needed to get help for his Eevee ASAP and began to walk away from the obnoxious young man.

"I used to have an Eevee like that. Completely useless. I wasted probably two weeks in that damned Eterna Forest trying to get it to become a Leafeon. You have no idea how bad the bugs are in that place. Finally I got so fed up I told it to just stay by the rock and wait for me," The young man explained casually as he ran his fingers through his hair.

Lucas stopped cold in his tracks, "What did you say?"

"That thing was so stupid, I bet it's still waiting by that stupid rock. Boy, I wish I could see the look on its face, still thinking I'm coming back for it," the man began laughing and his entourage laughed along with him. His laughter stopped instantly when a right uppercut sent him flying across the room, crashing into a potted plant.

Lucas launched himself at the brown-haired boy, grabbing him by the lapels of his suit and throwing him to the floor. His steel-toed boots found their way to the young-man's stomach twice before the tattooed teen pinned the boy to the floor with his own body began throwing punch after punch to his opponent's face, "Infected stomach wound." Crack! "Fluid in the lungs!" Wham! "Hypothermia!" Thunk! "He almost died!"

The teen was like a wild animal now, wrapping his hands around the man's neck and squeezed slowly, reveling in the look of wide-eyed fear the ridiculous piece of filth was giving him. This look was nothing compared to that look of desperation Gizmo gave him, shuddering and shivering by the Moss Rock. The way this man was gasping for breath was only a fraction of the suffering the Eevee felt as his breathing stopped inside of Lucas' vest while the boy's legs screamed in pain from running to the Pokemon Center. When the man's eyes began to roll into his head, Lucas let go and began his chorus of punches again, that cocky, snide face becoming less and less recognizable with each blow to his skull, "He almost died! He almost died! You ABANDONED your Pokemon, you LIED to him that you were coming back and you dare to make JOKES about it? A piece of garbage like you has no right to live! You want to know the look on Gizmo's face when he was waiting for you? It's going to be the same look you have when I tear your goddamn throat out!"

"Oh my god! Someone get that animal off of him!" the boy's female companion shrieked. Just before Lucas could lay another punch, a pair of massive guards yanked the teen off of his victim and shoved him towards the roped-off room. They threw him onto a couch of the study and while one guard kept an eye on their prisoner, the other went to find Mr. Backlot.

As the adrenaline and anger subsided, reason and thinking flooded back to Lucas' mind and he took in what he had actually done. This situation had even been worse than the boy at school who had thrown rocks at the Pidgey. Over the months since Lucas had started training, he had often imagined what Gizmo's original Trainer was like. He thought it was some stupid kid who didn't know anything about Pokemon and didn't know what he was doing, or some impatient, heartless Trainer who had left Gizmo in a fit of anger. Never in a million years had he imagined that Gizmo's Trainer was this horrible sadist, who had intentionally told his loyal Pokemon that he would return for him, would make jokes about his act of premeditated cruelty. Until the day he died, Lucas would not regret the injuries he caused that bastard. But he also had, seemingly unprovoked, violently attacked someone in a huge room of witnesses.

It felt ironic that they were holding him in this room, the room he was so curious to see beforehand, now his prison. There was no doubt that the police would be called. Lucas sank his head in his bloody hands, his own fresh blood mixing with the dry blood of his target, dripping from cuts on his knuckles made by the man's teeth when he punched his mouth. He had really messed up this time. Between the open case still in Cherrygrove and this incident, he would not see outside of a jail cell until well after his eighteenth birthday, or even after his twenty-fifth. It wasn't about his family or John this time, but with this fight, it was more than certain that he would lose his Pokemon. He felt no remorse for what he had done to the man in the formerly white suit, but he regretted this action more than any in his life. He would lose them all. Hotrod who had just evolved, Franky, the Gyrados with such a happy temperament, Sparky who just wanted to see the world after decades trapped in an abandoned house, and Gizmo...

A tiny 'vii' sound made Lucas look up. He had set Gizmo down before attacking his former Trainer and lost track of the Pokemon in the commotion. But the Eevee was back, sitting in front of his new Trainer with his ears cocked to the side in curiosity and his large black eyes shining with concern. Despite his fear and stress from seeing his old Trainer again, all Gizmo cared about right now was how Lucas was doing. Seeing how much that Eevee cared about him made him feel even worse, and it was likely he would never see him again. Without a word Lucas scooped up his first Pokemon and held the small creature close against his chest. Then, in the first time since he was seven years-old, Lucas broke down and sobbed.


	29. Chapter 29 Mystery of Iron Island

Chapter 29: Mystery of Iron Island

The last time Lucas had really cried was when he was seven year-old. He had just come home with another spelling test with a low C and once again told how he doesn't apply himself and should be more like his brother. Just after he finished his homework, John had come home and made an announcement: he had just come back from visiting Professor Elm and had received his first Pokemon, a Totodile. He would be leaving that day. His parents had arranged for a last-minute goodbye party and all his neighbors and all his relatives had come over to say their farewells and wish him luck. They all told John that they knew he was bound to be a Champion, that he was so good at everything, and that Lucas should be honored that brother was going to be this big hero. No one listened when he questioned John's motives for going on a Journey, and no one listened when Lucas said he'd be a Champion too, dismissing him once again in favor of his preferred sibling. When the party ended and John left Cherrygrove City, Lucas spent the who night crying himself to sleep. And since then, he never cried again.

Until now.

Lucas sat in the study of Mr. Backlot, an eccentric millionaire who loved Pokemon and Trainers, clutching onto his first Pokemon, Gizmo while sobbing uncontrollably. It was as though nearly a decade's worth of pent-up emotion and resentment had poured out of him. The study was now doubling as a temporary holding cell for the teen Trainer while Mr. Backlot was being informed of the current situation. Lucas had come to Mr. Backlot's Annual Trainer Appreciation Ball with Morgan, his sometimes-friend-mostly-rival. After she had abandoned him to avoid someone she knew, Lucas ran into a spoiled, smug Trainer who he learned was Gizmo's original Trainer. After hearing the callous, sadistic young man's response to abandoning the Eevee simply because it couldn't evolve, Lucas had lost his hair-trigger temper and violently beaten the Trainer. The teen didn't regret the injuries he inflicted, but he regretted his action because of the consequences that were in store for him. He would be arrested, go back to Juvey, lose his Trainer license, and worst of all, lose all of his Pokemon.

Upon hearing someone step into the room, Lucas got a grip on himself, finally stopping his flood of emotion and viciously rubbing at his cheeks, eyes and nose to remove all evidence of his weakness. The teen glanced over to the room's new occupants, refusing to lift his head, still hung in shame. It was Mr. Backlot, the fat, cheerful man with a massive mustache, though he didn't seem so cheery now. Behind him stood one of the security guards that had pulled Lucas off of his victim, and surprisingly, Morgan. He strode up to the boy that refused to match his eyes, "The police have been called and they are on their way. But before they come, I'd like to hear from you myself why you did what you did,"

Lucas' head shot up in surprise. While he expected the police to be called, it came as a shock that the millionaire wanted to get his side of the story. In all the times he had gotten in trouble, no one ever cared what Lucas had to say about it. The teen took in a deep, calming breath and started from the beginning. How he found Gizmo sick, malnourished and at death's door in the Eterna Forest. Later he learned that the Pokemon had been abandoned by his Trainer because he was unable to evolve on account of the Everstone the Eevee had ingested. Mr. Backlot's expression didn't change, though he nodded at some intervals of Lucas' story. Lucas then explained that the man he had attacked was Gizmo's old Trainer, and when the man started making jokes about leaving the normal-type to die, Lucas lost it and couldn't control his actions.

"I understand." was all Mr. Backlot had to say when a pair of uniformed officers stepped into study, guided by a maid. The rich man turned to the Police, "Gentleman, in the room across from this one you will find a young man whose face was very badly beaten. I want him arrested for Pokemon abuse,"

"What?" Lucas couldn't believe his ears. A second ago he was sure he was going to jail, now he had sworn Mr. Backlot directed the police to arrest the other Trainer.

"He abandoned one of his Pokemon instead of releasing it properly. I'm sure if you call the nurse at the Eterna City Pokemon Center she will be more than happy to provide you with all the details you need," Mr. Backlot's boisterous smile returned. The officers nodded without a word and headed to the room with the beaten Trainer.

Lucas continued to stare at the millionaire in disbelief, "I don't understand..."

The jovial older man turned back to his former prisoner, gestured towards Morgan and explained, "Just after the commotion, and one of my employees told me what had happened, this young lady came up to me and explained who you were. You were a Trainer working towards becoming a Champion with a fierce love for Pokemon, and that you couldn't have attacked that boy unless you had a good reason. That is why I asked you for your side, to discover what the reason was. When I said I love Pokemon, I wasn't exaggerating. While my life ended up being one of business rather than as a Trainer, I have devoted vast fortunes to Pokemon protection and preservation, including my Pokemon Garden. When you told me your story, the way your Eevee reacted the entire time told me that what you were saying was entirely true. I have no tolerance for mistreatment of Pokemon, so if he tries to press charges against you, or weasel out of what he did, I promise you he won't get away with it,"

"Thanks." It may not have seemed like a huge sentiment of gratitude, but it was all Lucas could think of. After several seconds of silence he added, "I'm sorry I ruined your party,"

Mr. Backlot waved the idea off and proceeded to scratch Gizmo on the head. The millionaire apparently found a particularly itchy spot because the Pokemon's eyes had closed and was maneuvering his face to get closer to the man's fat, manicured hands, "What good is a party if there isn't a little excitement?"

Lucas got up and brushed himself off, "I really appreciate what you did for me, Mr. Backlot, but it probably will be best if I leave now,"

"I should be going, too," Morgan added, finally breaking her own uncharacteristic silence.

"I hope to see you both next year, Lucas, Morgan," Mr. Backlot stated genuinely

"Yeah, sure. I'm sure it will be a blast," the Trainer added with a slightly malevolent grin.

As the two Trainers left the sky was growing dark orange from the approaching evening, though it seemed as Backlot's party showed no sign of letting up, even with Lucas' interruption. There was an awkward silence between Lucas and Morgan, the walk back to Hearthome to retrieve their possessions unusually somber. Lucas hated these uncomfortable silences, plus he had something extremely important to say to her, "Morgan, thanks. You really saved my ass back there. I really owe you this time,"

Morgan shook her head as she pulled off her gloves and stretched out her slightly sweaty fingers, "It's not me you should be thanking, it's Professor Oak,"

"What?" Lucas stopped suddenly to turn to his companion.

"After I saw the fight I found that Aide guy and got him to call Professor Oak since I didn't have his number. I remember from one of our talks about how you met him and he encouraged you to become a Trainer. He's the one who vouched for your character. I'm not sure why Backlot didn't mention it, but it's true,"

"Still. I really appreciate that you did that. I do sorta wonder though why you keep doing all these things for me though. I mean, I was always under the impression we sorta hated each other,"

"I don't like seeing dreams die. So many things in this world have to die, dreams shouldn't be one of them," Morgan took a deep breath and continued, "But there's another reason as well. The sad truth is, as much as I hate to admit this, you, Lucas, are my best friend,"

"Wuh?"

"I haven't had any human friends since my dad died. I didn't really want any as long as I had my team and my dream. After everything we've been through together I think that made us friends, and since you're my only human friend, I guess that makes you my best friend," though Morgan added quickly, "But if you tell anyone that I'll kill you,"

Lucas threw up his hands defensively, "Hey, I have a reputation to keep. I can't be known for being friends with Emo girls,"

Morgan smirked, "I think this is where we part ways, Lucas. I talked with some people at the party and they told me the other way to get to Hoenn from Sinnoh is through the Battle Area northeast of Snowpoint City. Normally only people with eight Sinnoh League badges are allowed there, but because of this hiccup with Sunnyshore, they're letting people who need to go to Hoenn through. I know you're headed to Canaclave, and that's on the opposite side of the region. Good luck Lucas,"

"See you around, Morgan," Lucas smiled genuinely. As she walked away from him into the increasing darkness he yelled out one last thing to her, "Hey Morgan! Popcorn!"

With a final smile, she disappeared into greenery on her way back to Hearthome.

Lucas kept his duffel bag with him at all times, there was no need to continue back to the city. Morgan was right, his next stop would be the Gym in Canaclave City, the first place Lucas came to upon arriving in Sinnoh. He remembered the HM the Aide had given him, and decided now would be a good time to teach the move to one of his Pokemon, and he knew precisely whom to choose. Summoning out his freshly evolved Charizard, he used the disk and taught Hotrod the skill needed to allow Pokemon to carry humans safely across the sky. Before jumping onto the Pokemon's back Lucas pulled out his Pokevice and looked through his list of contacts before making his selection. The phone rang a few times before the desired party answered, "Hello, who is this?"

"It's me, Professor, Lucas,"

"Ah, Lucas!" the respected old man replied cheerfully upon recognizing the caller, "How is it going? Did you get that HM from my Aide?"

"Yes, Professor, I did, and I'm just about to head to Canaclave now,"

"Excellent, excellent. I was wondering if you could do my a favor on your way back from Canaclave and on your way to Snowpoint. Jubilife is between Canaclave and Hearthome, and just south of there is a small town called Sandgem. That town is the home of my old friend Professor Rowan. He has an item that needs to be delivered and if you could stop by and do his delivery for him I'd be most grateful,"

"Sure Professor, that won't be a problem," Lucas said cheerfully and then shifted back to a more serious remorseful tone, "And Professor, I'll make you proud,"

"You already have, Lucas,"

With the end of the conversation, Lucas threw himself onto Hotrod's back and kicked off of the ground in a rush of wind and dust. The Charizard's powerful wings flapped and the Pokemon and his Trainer rose higher and higher in the sky. Hearthome, Mt. Coronet and Jubilife City all whooshed by in a fraction of the time it would take Lucas to walk back to Canaclave, even by bike. Lucas and the fire-type chased the sunset as they headed west to their destination. No after-victory high, no chemically-induced euphoria, no sexual ecstasy matched the sheer thrill Lucas now had racing across the sky on his Pokemon. Morgan's Honchrow didn't fly anywhere nearly as fast or as agilely as Hotrod could, and as if he could sense Lucas' giddiness, the Charizard added barrel-rolls and loopty-loops as to his pattern, much to his Trainer's delight. Far too soon, however, the flight was over and the Trainer was standing in front of the doors of the Canaclave City Pokemon Center. That night, Lucas experienced the best night of sleep he ever had.

The first time Lucas had come through Canaclave City, the teen could care less about the city and its offerings. He had arrived there on a ship from Olivine City in Johto and had to fend for himself when his brother didn't pick him up. Now returning as a Pokemon Trainer, he had a better appreciation for the area. Canaclave City was a trading port through and through. Commercial fishing boats, private yachts, and huge freighters were constantly going in and out of the harbor beneath the bridges that lifted up and down to accommodate the maritime traffic. Besides the boating activity there was a large public library and Lucas' target, the Canaclave City Gym.

Canaclave's Gym was almost camouflaged as its corrugated steel walls and simple style made it blend in with the warehouses that surrounded it. The telltale Gym sign with its list of winners and Leader description indicated which building Lucas should select. _Roark, the man with the steel body_. A steel-type Gym. After Lucas' difficult time with Pastoria's Leader, Barry, the teen Trainer would not take the type for granted. Steel-types were weak against fire, fighting and ground Pokemon, immune to poison-types and strong against ice, rock and dragon Pokemon. But there were also few pure steel-types. Most were in reality dual-types, meaning devising a strategy would not be as simple as relying on Hotrod. The young man almost was ready to turn back to the Pokemon Center to prepare when he noticed something curious. While he was standing in front of the sign and thinking, a small trickle of people kept going into the Gym, and it seemed none had left. A gut feeling told the teen something was going on, and Lucas wanted to find out what.

Following the latest small group entering Canaclave's Gym, Lucas found that the lobby with crowded with Trainers. Most were Hikers, Miners and a few Ruin Maniacs and everyone seemed frantic. As the teen moved through the crowd he caught small pieces of conversation like 'missing for three days' and 'no sign of him'. In the middle of this mob of concerned peoples the tattooed teen spotted two familiar people: Grant, the president of the Underground Explorers Club and his grandson Roark, the Leader of the Oreburgh City Gym. As he approached them he could tell something was wrong. While Grant was always an old man, right now it seemed like he was wearing every year of his age like a millstone around the neck. He was haggard and relying on the nearby wall to support his body in addition to his trembling cane. Roark was only in his twenties and he didn't seem much better, and he had circles under his eyes beneath his glasses that suggested he hadn't slept in days. Lucas announced his presence with a set of straightforward questions, "What's going on, you guys? What are you doing here? What's wrong?"

"Lucas!" Roark snapped to attention, though his surprise came less from running into the Trainer as it did to be addressed by anyone. Clearly he had been in a daze for a while. When the familiarity of the tattooed boy finally sank in the Leader explained the situation hollowly, as though he still didn't believe the events himself, "Byron, the Gym Leader here. He's gone missing. He went to Iron Island and it's been three days since anyone's heard from him. We have no idea what happened. I've called his home phone, the house on Iron Island, even the cellphone we made him get three months ago. He's not answering any of them,"

"Oh man, that's terrible. No wonder you seem so upset, I bet you Leader guys all know each other pretty well and a blow to one of you must be like a blow to all of you," Lucas said sympathetically. Though a small part of his brain was also slightly amused that the Sinnoh cycle of Leaders absent from their Gym seemed to start up again.

Roark shook his head, "No you don't understand. He's not just the Leader here, he's my dad,"

Lucas felt his face flush from embarrassment and shame. He had completely misread the situation, "Oh. I'm really sorry. I mean-"

Grant raised a weary hand to cut him off, "Nothing to feel guilty about, Lucas, you couldn't have possibly known having not lived here,"

"I'm scared something must have happened in the mines," Roark seemed to pale with his last confession.

"Mines?" Lucas asked.

"Iron Island, the place my dad went missing, is an iron mine. The iron goes from there to here in Canaclave and then to the Fuego Ironworks north of Floroma Town. Like how I work in the coal mines in Oreburgh, dad works the iron ore here," Roark explained, "But recently every time a human goes near the mines, the Pokemon go berserk. If something happened like the mine collapsed..." Roark couldn't bring himself to finish the thought and changed gears, "I'm a Gym Leader and even I can't get near the place. If dad's there and needs help no one can get to him. We don't know what to do. We're gathered here to try to figure out some kind of rescue party, but so far none of our ideas are very practical,"

"I can help," Lucas offered, "You two have been so nice to me when you didn't have to, I'd be honored to try to rescue him. I can leave right now and go look for him,"

"No offense Lucas, I know you're a really good Trainer, and you must be way stronger than when I faced you, but I'm not exaggerating about how dangerous Iron Island has become. It's not safe for any one Trainer to go through by themselves," Roark explained.

"Then I can go with him," a low, deep voice caused the Leader, Trainer and old man to turn around. The crowd parted in front of a serious looking Trainer in a blue suit and fedora. He had a curt, no-nonsense impression to him as with long strides he caught up to the rock-type Leader.

"Riley!" Roark said with some surprise.

"I know you were planning this whole big rescue party to scour the island, but I don't think that's a good idea. If there's been a collapse or something that's agitating the Pokemon, too many people is just going to make things worse. We're better off with a small group. I can go. Byron's a good man and I've known him for years. And I can take this Lucas kid with me. I've heard good things about him," Riley stated matter-of-factly.

"And I'll make the third. I'm one of the last strong Trainers here," Roark added.

Riley shook his head, "I don't think that's a good idea,"

"But he's my father!"

"Exactly. We don't know how we'll find him. It's not easy for a man to put aside his feelings when something bad happened to his father. You're better off staying here. That way in case something happens to us too, you can arrange a backup plan,"

"All right, fine," Roark conceded, "Gook luck, Lucas, Riley. Please find my dad,"

With a wordless nod, Riley headed out of the Gym with Lucas struggling to catch up to him. The teen followed to older Trainer to the docks. With his decisive, determined gait, Riley walked at a speed that forced Lucas to jog to catch up.

"Are we going to going to use Pokemon to get to Iron Island?" the teen wheezed. Even after months of walking in the fresh air and increasing his activity level, Lucas still felt badly out of shape compared to the other man.

Riley shook his head, "No. I have a boat."

Without another word, Riley gestured to one of the small speedboats in Canaclave's docks. Without wasting another second, the two Trainers got into the vessel, the suited man threw the boat into gear and set off for Iron Island. The older Trainer said nothing as he sped towards the small piece of land in the middle of Sinnoh's largest harbor. Riley was one of those strong, silent types. Not wasting his time or anyone else's with pointless chatter or arbitrary smalltalk. Lucas had to admire that. While he disliked the awkward silences that were always created when people left important things unsaid, he himself also tended be more on the quiet side. But something Riley had said at the Gym made Lucas curious. He did not wish to disrespect the man's quiet, but there was also something he wanted to know, "Hey, what did you mean 'you've heard good things about me?'"

"When Gym Leaders run into Trainers that make an impact on them, word soon spreads to all the high ranking Trainers of the region. Word going 'round is that you're on your way to becoming the League's next Champion. Leaders generally aren't easy to impress," Riley explained. Even with the roar of the boat's engines and the whooshing of the salty air and sea foam passing by, his low, deep voice was still fully audible. Lucas had no idea this would be the answer. While he had his ambitions and was determined to be the best, he never really dwelt on the idea that he would become famous, or even infamous.

There was no time to discuss anything else as Riley parked his craft in front of a small, homemade dock just in front of a large rocky hill. Near their boat was another small vessel, a fishing boat with an outboard motor and a few oars for in case the engine failed. The suited Trainer observed the vessel thoughtfully but said nothing before jumping out and heading for the hill. Lucas leapt after him, trusting Riley knew what he was looking for. Once again the teen jogged to catch up with older man who never seemed to move at more than a swift walk, but still was difficult to keep up with.

At the top of the hill the path split into two forks. Lucas found Riley at the left fork, which lead to a small, cozy-looking sea cottage. Like the fishing boat, Riley was observing it with great interest, as though he knew exactly what was going on just by looking at its otherwise nondescript facade. Again silently, the man in the blue suit and fendora approached the house, turned the unlocked door and marched inside. The teen was right behind him and looked around the one-room building. The cottage was fairly clean with a floor swept within the past week and a clean table that showed no sign of a recent meal. There were definitely signs someone was here recently though, as the bed was unmade, a pair of muddy boots were by the front door and washed dishes were still left in the sink. Like a crime noir detective, Riley took in every fact as though they were parts of a puzzle that were becoming clearer by the second. The older Trainer finally explained the facts to Lucas, "That fishing boat in the pier is Byron's, as is this house. The fact that that's there and the door was unlocked shows he _is_ on the island like we've all assumed. But the soot in the stove, the bed and the dishes show that he went off to work, but he hasn't been back since. That means he has to be in the mines,"

"I have a question. How come Byron is the only one missing? Roark said this island is an active iron mine, that means there has to be tons of people and equipment constantly moving in and out. Why is the Gym Leader the only person they can't find?" Lucas asked as he continued to observe the small house, Gizmo having hopped off his customary spot on the Trainer's shoulder to further sniff the nooks and crannies of the hut.

"Like Roark said the Pokemon of the island have started acting completely abnormally. For years they'd tolerated the mining operation without much conflict, usually only bothering people with Pokemon like Trainers. Then a few weeks ago they started attacking the miners. Completely destroyed huge pieces of equipment, ambushing workers, became so dangerous that the mine had to be closed down. A bunch of Trainers from the Gym came down to investigate only to find not only were the Pokemon more vicious, they were more powerful too. Pokemon in their upper seventies, and in some cases even higher than that. Byron said he was going to look into it. He started sending back samples of water around the area, checking out the other islands for similar problems and then we lost contact with him three days ago. Byron was always a man to do things his own way, but he's also a family man first and foremost. The fact that Grant and Roark haven't heard from him is a very bad sign,"

"Roark didn't go into too much detail about what was happening in the mines except the Pokemon acting weird and him not being able to approach them. But if things are as bad as you say then we can't be up here just to find Byron, we need to figure out what's hurting the Pokemon too,"

"It was good I brought you, we're of the same mind," Riley stated, "Because that's exactly what I'd like to find out, too."


	30. Chapter 30 The Rescue

Chapter 30: The Rescue

Iron Island was the biggest iron mine in Sinnoh, and like the coal mine in Oreburgh, the iron was the lifeblood of Canaclave City. Normally the mine was constantly busy, shipments of the raw hematite ore coming up to the entrance while new shifts of miners traded places with those finishing for the day. Now the mine was eerily quiet as Lucas and Riley explored the abandoned operation. The mine wasn't shut down because the veins of unprocessed iron had finally been spent, but because a series of mysterious and dangerous Pokemon attacks forced the closure of the mine for the workers' safety. Byron, the Leader of the Canaclave City Gym had come to the mine to investigate not only as an expert in the steel-type, but as a worker himself. The father of Gym Leader Roark and son of Underground Explorer Club President Grant had gone missing and hadn't been in contact with anyone from his Gym, or his family, in over three days. Both determined to save Byron and discover the reason behind the Pokemon of Iron Island's sudden change, Lucas had come with family friend and high-ranking Trainer Riley to explore the dark and cavernous mines.

The quiet of the mines was not only eerie from the lack of human activity, but also an unnatural silence from the lack of other kinds of life as well. No rumbles or roars of Pokemon echoing in the deeper caverns, not even the soft chittering of the real bats that after years of adaptation had learned to live relatively peacefully with the Zubat and Golbat in the area. Neither Trainer said anything, they only paid attention to their surroundings, sure at any second something would happen.

When the topmost level of the mine revealed nothing informative, Riley led the younger Trainer to the mine's elevator. The two went into the tight orange cage and the well-dressed man pressed the button that would send the cart further into the earth. Nothing happened. Riley pressed the button and scowled when the elevator gave no response. Taking a small screwdriver from a pocket inside his lapels, he popped the cover to the control panel and carefully probed the wires inside. When he saw them intact his eyes followed the path of the wiring to the top of the cage. Climbing out of the elevator and to the top of the of the shaft's scaffolding he discovered the problem with a frustrated grunt. Curious to see what was wrong, Lucas followed the older Trainer. Riley pointed with the screwdriver at the problem, "Claw marks."

Lucas whistled. A series of claw marks not only cut through the thick, insulated wires that fed power into the elevator system, but left deep gouges in the steel structure. Only a Pokemon could do this kind of damage, and only an angry one would want to. After getting over the amazement of what he had seen, the teenage Trainer thought of something, "Wait, if the elevator is out of order, how are we going to get to any of the deeper levels?"

"We're going to have to climb down. Any of your Pokemon know Rock Climb?" Riley asked bluntly.

The boy shook his head, "Nope. And even if they did it wouldn't make much difference. I need the badge from Snowpoint City to be able to use it. I know because I looked it up in the Pokevice last night after I got the Fly HM,"

"Then we'll use mine," Riley stated. He pulled out a Pokeball from his lapel pocket and tossed it forward, "Go Rhydon!"

The massive evolved form of Rhyhorn appeared in the mine with a roar that echoed through the caverns. Riley jumped on one of its shoulders and yanked Lucas onto the other before the Pokemon slide down the steep cliff located next to the elevator shaft. The teen's teeth chattered as the shaky journey lasted several minutes and they descended dozens of feet. Finally the Rhydon landed roughly on flat, solid ground and not too soon for Lucas. Why flying was ecstasy, using a Pokemon for mountain climbing made him feel like riding on a paint mixer, the large kind hardware stores had for mixing many cans of paint at a time. The teen needed a minute for his legs to stop wobbling. Even Gizmo seemed a bit dizzy from the ride.

"Good news is all the other levels can be accessed with ladders. We shouldn't need to use Rock Climb again," Riley stated seeing how badly Lucas was doing.

"That's a relief," Lucas said as he slowly rose to his feet. This level of the mines was darker than the previous one. There were artificial lights that littered the paths, but like the elevator, it appeared their power was cut. This level didn't seem as eerily silent as the previous one. A low rumble seemed to come from somewhere, almost like background noise. But even without the silence a piece of Lucas still felt unnerved.

Once again Riley led the way, his fast pace slowed as he carefully observed his surroundings. Suddenly the older Trainer stopped and his hand once again reached for a Pokeball. Suddenly from ahead of them a Steelix and a Graveller erupted from the ground.

Lucas's eyes grew wide in terror, "Wild Steelix? Is that normal around here?"

"Wild Steelix are fairly common on Iron Island. What's abnormal is their level," Riley explained. Lucas pulled out his Pokedex to see what the Trainer meant. Both the rock-type and the steel-type were in the high 50s, far stronger than any of Lucas' Pokemon. "Normally the Pokemon around here are in their mid-to-high 30s. These guys have become the runts of this cave. I know most of your Pokemon won't be able to fight these guys head on, but do what you can to back me up,"

Lucas nodded and reached for his belt, "Go Haunter! Use Hypnosis!"

The purple ghost the teen had trained for his meeting with Barry appeared on the field and sent a wave of energy towards her opponents. Though at first the Pokemon resisted, both the Steelix and the Graveller collapsed to the ground asleep. Riley pulled out his own Pokeball, "Go Lucario! Use Hi-Jump Kick on the Graveller!"

Like Ashley's Rex and Maylene's Pokemon, Riley's Lucario was a mighty fighter and obedient creature. The Pokemon almost seemed to come out of its Pokeball already in the middle of its attack and knocked the sleeping rock-type out with one blow. Lucas pulled out his Pokedex again. Riley's Lucario was well into level 60. Though the teen knew nothing about the man in the stylish blue suit, he could tell Riley was no amateur when it came to Pokemon battles. Just as Riley was about to get his Pokemon to attack again, Lucas asked something, "Hey wait, can you not knock out this Steelix? I'd like to try to catch it,"

Riley nodded curtly and got his steel-and-fighting type to hold back its attacks and give the younger Trainer a chance to do some damage before the Steelix could wake up. When the Pokemon was significantly weakened, Lucas threw a Great Ball and captured the powerful creature. Once this task was complete, the two Trainers continued their exploration of the abandoned mine.

The double Pokemon attack was only the first of the wave of battles the Trainers had to face, and like Riley had warned, the Pokemon only got stronger and stronger the deeper they got into the cave. Lucas did what he could to help the older Trainer, but at one point even his strongest Pokemon were no match for the behemoths that had come to live in Iron Island. The worst part was some of the wild Pokemon even ignored their opponents in battle, and tried to attack the humans directly. These Pokemon were truly dangerous, and greater concern developed for the strong-minded Gym Leader Byron. And though the Trainers were getting further into the mines, there was still no clue as to why the Pokemon had become so vicious.

"Hey pal, did you get some dirt or rocks in your ears?" Lucas asked Gizmo gently. After the last battle with two angry Onix on the third level of the cave, the teen had noticed his Eevee had incessantly been shaking his head and pawing at his ears. The boy did his best to examine his Pokemon in the low light, but as far as he could tell nothing was physically wrong with his normal-type. But as the Trainers descended into the fourth level of mining operations of Iron Island, Gizmo's neurotic scratching and shaking only seemed to get worse.

"This is the last level of the mines. We should find Byron here," Riley informed his teen partner, "But be careful, the strongest Pokemon are going to be here."

Riley pulled out a penlight and began scouring the area for signs of the missing Leader and almost the instant that the light hit the cave roof a flock of very angry and very powerful Golbat swarmed the two Trainers. Riley summoned out his Lucario again while Lucas commanded his Rotom, Sparky, to use Discharge. After a desperate battle that involved the Trainers getting as badly bitten as their Pokemon, the Golbat eventually dispersed and vanished into the darkness. The Trainers took a moment to catch their breath when they heard a low, quiet voice call out to them, "Is someone there?"

"Byron?"

"Riley, is that you?" the gruff voice got slightly louder as he realized there were people with him.

"Yeah, it's me. Where are you? We can't see you in this darkness and I don't want to risk the light again,"

"I'm under the auger. The ride-on one," The voice said with a sigh. Riley tried his best to adjust his eyes to the darkness and reached in front of himself to see if he could feel out the equipment that had trapped the Gym Leader. When the older Trainer finally bent down, Lucas followed carefully behind him. Riley risked the penlight again and shined on the face of Byron. The man looked just like the picture in Grant's house in Eterna City. Magenta hair like Roark, a five o'clock shadow and deep-set, determined-looking eyes. He seemed a little older and rougher, and was now gaunt from probably several days without food and water, but otherwise totally recognizable, "Who's the kid?"

"This is Lucas, he's here helping me get you out. So what happened?" Riley asked as he shined the light on the upended auger.

"I was exploring the cave, trying to see what got the Pokemon all up in a knot like this. Suddenly I get ambushed by the largest Steelix I've ever seen. It just launched itself out of the ground like it was water and in the wave of the energy the auger capsized onto my legs. They aren't broken, but I'm completely pinned down and can't even reach my Pokemon," Byron finished with an angry grunt.

"No need to get all worked up. We'll get you out now. Lucas, if you've got any food in that bag of yours you better give it to Byron, he needs it," Riley commanded. Lucas did as he was told and shuffled through his duffel bag for some snacks and a bottle of soda he always kept for when he was hungry. As the teen gave his food to the grateful Leader, Riley called out to his Pokemon, who had been left outside his Pokeball after the Golbat battle along with Sparky, "All right Lucario. I'm going to need you now. Use Strength and get this thing off of Byron,"

Much to his shock, the Lucario did not respond.

"Lucario, are you okay? Didn't you hear me? I need your help. Use Strength," Riley commanded again. This time the two-legged, dog-like Pokemon stepped forward, a strange, distant look in his eyes. The Lucario continued to walk towards its Trainer, and just before it approached the auger, it lunged. The older Trainer dove for the ground to dodge a powerful punch delivered by the formerly loyal Pokemon. Eyes wide in shock and horror Riley cried out, "Lucario, what's wrong?"

Once again the steel-and-fighting type lashed out at his master, leaving a crack in the cave wall as once again Riley dodged the dangerous attack. Riley pulled out a Pokeball and pointed it at the Pokemon, "Lucario, return!"

The beam of light flashed at the Pokemon, but the agile creature nimbly avoided the recall beam and knocked the Pokeball out of his Trainer's hand. Lucas thought desperately about what to do. There was no way he could take on the Lucario himself, none of his Pokemon were anywhere nearly as strong as the steel-type. Leaving to go for help would do no good, it would require going back through the underground gauntlet of overpowered rock, ground and steel-types. He couldn't free Byron himself, but there had to be something he could do to help. That was when he noticed both Gizmo and Sparky's odd behavior. Gizmo was still pawing desperately at its head, now practically burying his head in the sand to block whatever irritant was attacking his brain. And joyful, happy-go-lucky Sparky seemed practically irate, hovering in the air with a grim expression etched on its face. That's when Lucas remembered the dull rumble he had heard. After several hours of hearing it, he had tuned the sound out, but now that he was paying attention the noise was still there.

Lucas focused on the noise, noticing it was getting louder and louder as he approached a pile of equipment barely visible in a corner of the mineshaft. In fact, the only reason he could see even part of the pile of drills, jackhammers and shovels was because of a faint glow that seemed to escape from gaps between the handles and cords. The teen raced to the pile as Riley fought to avoid being harmed by his own Pokemon, pulling away the tools until the glowing object was fully visible. The device was about the size of a coffee table with a series of green lights blinking in succession on top of it. There were wires poking out of it and in addition to the rumbling it seemed to hum. Now right next to it, Lucas felt like his head was going to split, a dull ache that made him agitated and more short-tempered than usual. Grabbing a shovel, the tattooed young man began smacking it, slamming it over and over again until it sputtered with sparks and the glowing and humming died.

Almost instantly, the pain in Lucas' brain ceased, Sparky perked up, Gizmo stopped tearing at his ears, and Riley's Lucario stopped his attack and looked around the dimly lit cavern in absolute confusion.

"What just happened?" Byron called out, his voice and body stronger now that he had some food and hydration in him.

"That's what I'd like to know," Riley replied curtly. He continued to eye his Lucario suspiciously, but the Pokemon seemed back to its normal loyal behavior, following his Trainer as he approached the remains of the machine Lucas had destroyed.

"I think this was the thing that made the Pokemon go crazy," Lucas pointed with the tip of the shovel.

Riley shined his light on the device, looking over it carefully and drawing a conclusion, "This is some kind of sonic device. It emits an ultra low frequency sound that usually only Pokemon can hear, especially ground, rock and steel types or creatures sensitive to vibrations like bats. It scrambles their brainwaves and makes them more violent, and it also makes them temporarily very strong. At one point, once other Pokemon get close to it, then it affects their minds too, though not as much as rock, steel and ground Pokemon,"

"Then how come I could hear it?" Lucas asked curiously.

"Well, you didn't really. At least not the full extent of it, just enough to know there is a sound nearby. Young people have a better range of hearing than older people, so they can catch some low and high frequency sounds that someone in my age or Byron's age couldn't. What concerns me is who would put something like this down here, or what this symbol is supposed to mean,"

"What symbol?" Riley pointed the penlight at a crest at the back of the machine. It looks like a shield with three gold stars, one large and two small arranged to look like a 'C' on a navy blue field. Lucas recognized the symbol immediately, "Team Cosmic!"

"Who?"

"Team Cosmic. They're a criminal group. Their end goal is to eliminate any people or Pokemon they view as weak or useless. They are pure evil and this logo's their symbol. This was probably an operation to strengthen the Pokemon of this island so they could come back and catch them. But the Pokemon must have been suffering terribly, this thing even gave me a headache when I got close enough to it," Lucas explained.

Both Lucas and Riley looked on the remains of the evil device in silence until Byron called out to them, "While these Cosmic guys sound like bad news, let's not forget about me, okay? I'm still trapped down here,"

"Lucario, use Strength!"

"Dad!" Roark shouted with joy as his father limped through the doors of the Canaclave City Gym. Like the Leader had said, once the auger was off of his body, his legs—and his Pokemon—were just fine. With Cosmic's device destroyed, the Pokemon of Iron Island went mostly back to normal, and left the three Trainers mostly alone as they returned to the docks and Riley's small speedboat. Though both Riley and Lucas insisted on going to a hospital first, Byron was determined his son and father were his priority. The Junior Trainers cheered as their Leader marched through the Gym, supported on either side by Riley and Lucas. The gruff Gym Leader gave his only son a large hug, and clapped his slightly frail father on the shoulder. The exhaustion from their three day vigil disappeared as the family was brought back together.

"Byron, you should be in a hospital. Your legs may seem fine but you never know if you don't have any internal bleeding," Grant stated warningly.

"I'm fine Pops. There isn't anything wrong with me that a good night's rest and a thick steak won't fix," the Gym Leader reassured his father, though he was still leaning on Riley for support. "I do need to go to the Pokemon Center though to get my team checked out, but there's something I need to take care of here first," Riley lead Byron to the Gym's lobby and reached behind the reception desk to pull out a couple of objects before turning to Lucas, "Lucas, from what I understand you came to Canaclave City to earn your Mine Badge,"

"Well of course," Lucas thought obviously.

"Well, in my mind you've already earned it," Byron revealed the objects in his hand, a shiny badge and another TM.

"I can't accept that! I haven't defeated you in battle. I'm not just about to take a charity badge. I didn't take one from Gardenia for returning her Pokemon and I'm not taking one from you," The teen argued.

"This isn't some kind of insult, boy! My Pokemon are all in the early 40s, the Pokemon you battled on Iron Island were double that. That alone would be worth a badge, but not only did you go all the way through Iron Island, you also saved the Pokemon there and saved me,"

"I had Riley's help,"

"Not when my Lucario turned on me. Your Pokemon were going just as crazy as mine, but rather than just assuming it was something you did, you figured out the cause of their behavior and stopped it," Riley explained.

"I might be okay and I'm willing to risk my health, but not my Pokemon's. When I go to the Pokemon Center I'm going to have my team under observation for a solid week. During that time the Gym is going to be closed. I don't know any Trainers that're going to wait around for a week for a closed Gym. I'm not going to give you any prize money since you didn't win a battle, but in my eyes you did earn the Mine Badge and this TM for Flash Cannon," Byron insisted.

"I still don't know about this..." Lucas eyed the badge skeptically.

"The point of Gym Battles is to prove to the Pokemon League that you are a capable Trainer in mind, body and soul. That you have an understanding for battle strategy, a grasp of type and move advantages and empathy towards your own Pokemon and your opponents. When you beat Gym Leaders you prove that, but you can also prove that through various tasks and challenges. As master of steel-types, a type that is known for their enormous defensive capabilities, you have proven to me that you have an understanding and respect for the type by realizing that box was hurting them. Whether you beat me or not, you won this badge,"

Lucas grabbed for the badge and the TM and looked the older, gruff man in the eyes, "Alright, I'll take these prizes since you say I earned them. But only because I have a great respect for your family and all the favors they've done me. But someday, I'll come back here, when you and your Pokemon are better, and I'll challenge you to a real battle. Then not only will you fight me, you're going to give me everything you got, agreed?"

"I wouldn't want anything less," Byron promised.

"Lucas, there is something I want to give you, too," Roark interjected.

The young man groaned, "Not you, too. I still owe you for getting my ass out of jail,"

Roark reached into his shirt and pulled out a stone, "This is a Skull Fossil. It's the same kind of fossil I got my Cranidos from. I found it recently in the coal mines and I really want you to have it. You saved my father, Lucas, I owe you far more than you could possibly owe me,"

Lucas turned to Gizmo and sighed, "Well, I think it's time for me to head out. I think I've had all the emotional drama I can stand. I'm coming back for you Byron. And you too, Riley. I want to test that Lucario's strength for myself,"

"You better come back as a Champion, Lucas," Riley nodded.

"Count on it,"


	31. Chapter 31 Meeting Professor Rowan

Chapter 31: Meeting Professor Rowan

Lucas went to the Pokemon Center that evening after returning from the Canaclave City Gym. While his Pokemon were being healed from their exhausting trek through Iron Island, the young man sat at one of the Center's tables and stared at his new badge. Unlike his other badges, the teen was less than thrilled on how he received his Mine Badge. He didn't actually challenge Byron and defeat him in battle. Instead, Byron had given him the badge as well as the TM for the steel move Flash Cannon as a grateful reward for saving him from his trap on Iron Island, and destroying the Team Cosmic created device that had caused the island's Pokemon to become vicious. Byron had explained that Lucas' actions were more than enough to earn the badge, and that he would be closing the Gym for a week anyway in regards to his Pokemon. It was true that Lucas wouldn't be able to wait a week for the Gym to reopen. He still had a favor he had to do for Professor Oak.

As Lucas picked up the badge and rolled it between his fingers, its shiny surface glinting in the light, he thought about how much he changed. A year ago when he was still running around with his gang in Cherrygrove City, he wouldn't have thought twice about taking something someone gave him that he didn't fully earn. His relationship with his family, his brother and the town left him with a huge chip on his shoulder and a very large sense of entitlement. Now that he was a Trainer, just like he always dreamed to be, his outlook on life took almost a one-eighty. The best Trainers and Champions became what they were because they worked towards everything they got. Every Pokemon they captured, every creature they evolved and every badge they fought for. Lucas did accept the badge in the end, but only with a promise to one day battle Byron for real. He may not have fought for his Mine Badge, but for his last two badges he'd give everything he had.

With Sunnyshore still in its strange isolation, the next Gym would be in Snowpoint City, a perpetually frozen city just a little bit past the peak of Mt. Coronet, the only two ways to get to it was via a dock to an island that still needed access to Sunnyshore, and going through the mountain again itself. But before that Lucas had something he needed to do. Before going to Canaclave, Professor Oak had asked the Trainer to go to Sandgem Town, a small burgh south of Jubilife City, and receive and deliver a package from someone named Professor Rowan.

The nurse called over to Lucas and he regained his Pokemon. Going to the PC box, he decided to rearrange his team again. Though he felt slightly bad for Gizmo, he decided to box Donna and his new lineup was made up of Gizmo, Hotrod, Franky, Sparky, his Gabite and his Buneary Stella. Stella and Lucas' relation was complicated. He had received her egg from the Pokemon Coordinator Ashley, the offspring of her two most powerful Pokemon, and he had promised Ashley he would raise the baby with love and care. When the egg first hatched he and Stella seemed to have a loving connection, her newborn eyes looking at him with trust and wonder. But after boxing her for his Gym lineup in Veilstone City, her Buneary personality set in. He was told that Buneary are terrified of humans, and would demonstrate that fear through obnoxious tantrums and refusal to be handled. Stella was becoming a strong Pokemon in battle, but Lucas was determined to have the young Pokemon love him like the rest of his team did. He knew somewhere in that fearful glance and miserable whining, was that gentle look that she gave him the day she was born.

Returning back to the table, Lucas summoned both Gizmo and Stella. Stella had not begun shrieking yet, her indecisive look towards Lucas gave him hope. He set Gizmo in front of her as well as a packet of sweet Pokemon treats he had bought from the Center's vending machines, "Stella, I'm your Trainer, but I also want to be your friend. I know I seem sorta scary, even by people standards, but I really care for you, just like I care for Gizmo here. I know you feel alone, and not entirely sure what's going on, but we're a family now. Gizmo has a lot of children, and if you want, he can be your dad, too. I know you want to trust me, I can see you do,"

Gizmo picked up one of the treats and walked over to the Buneary. Being roughly the same size, the baby Pokemon didn't scream and cry like she did in battles against the larger creatures she faced when Lucas was traveling to Pastoria. Stella reached for the treat but Gizmo pulled away, luring her away from the edge of the table and depositing the treat on Lucas' hand. Stella cautiously approached the human before quickly snatching the treat from his fingertips and running back to her side of the table. When she had finished, Lucas picked up another treat and scooted his hand towards her, stopping a few feet in front of her. Gizmo sat next to his Trainer's hand and chirped cheerfully. Once again, Stella edged towards Lucas' hand and grabbed the treat. The teen repeated this several times, sliding his hand closer and closer towards the wary normal-type with each treat until he was close enough to touch her. But when he tried to pet her head, she smacked away his hand with her paw. With a defeated sigh Lucas recalled her to her Pokeball and turned to Gizmo, "Thanks for all your help, pal. But we were both fooling ourselves if we thought it was going to be this easy,"

The next day Lucas headed for his chore in Sandgem. Using Hotrod, he flew to Jubilife from Canaclave and started his trek south. Fortunately, the road from Jubilife to Sandgem was short and he was able to walk there within an hour. Along the way he found some of the weaker Pokemon that most beginning Trainers in Sinnoh had a chance to catch, and fought them himself to complete more of his Pokedex. Using Stella in battle he caught a Starly and a Shinx. Stella was a strong fighter and did exactly as she was told, but every time he tried to pet her or hold her after a victory she would either wail or kick at him. _Obedient, but not affectionate,_ Lucas thought sadly.

Sandgem Town itself was microscopic, one of the smallest towns Lucas had ever seen. It consisted of only a few buildings and houses, making Professor Rowan's lab incredibly easy to find. The teen Trainer wasn't sure how to approach the lab, he didn't know if he was supposed to knock like at a home or just go in like a business. Standing awkwardly in front of the door, he was eventually invited in by a twelve-year old boy with dark blue hair and a lab coat, "Good Morning and welcome to Rowan Labs. I'm Lucas, Professor Rowan's junior assistant,"

"Uh, I'm Lucas, too, I guess. I'm here on an errand from Professor Oak," Lucas scratched his head. Something told him another person with his name was going to make this task overly complicated.

"Right this way!" the boy showed him in and bounded down the hall cheerfully. While Lucas had been to both Professor Oak and Bebe's house, he had never been inside a real laboratory before. The glass-lined hall revealed scientists in various rooms conducting experiments with different chemicals, observing Pokemon walking around a large pen and reading papers from the large shelves in the research library. Professor Rowan was in his office at the very end of the hall. Like Professor Oak's house, Rowan's office was an amalgam of framed and jarred samples, scattered books and papers and computer equipment that could run circles around the average personal computer. At the same time, it felt very different from the other professor's work space. It felt more organized, the furniture and décor was more stark and clinical and the whole area felt more serious and efficient. Professor Rowan himself was busying himself with a microscope, scratching observations onto a notepad next to his work, all the while his back turned to his guests. The young assistant gave a small cough to try to announce their presence. When this act was unheard, or possibly altogether ignored, he called out instead, "Professor Rowan!"

The professor took a moment to finish writing something down before pushing himself away from the table on his rolling chair and spinning around to face his intruders. For a moment he said nothing as he took in the teen Lucas' appearance from his hair to his clothes to the Eevee tilting its head curiously on his shoulder, "You must be the boy Samuel sent,"

"Samuel?" the teen Trainer cocked his own head slightly.

"Ah yes, you know him as Professor Oak. Before he became the esteemed 'Pokemon Professor' Samuel was one of my best assistants. I have a great respect for him, but I'm afraid I can only call him Samuel and not confuse myself about whom I'm speaking," the older Professor lifted himself out of his chair and held his hands behind his back as he continued to observe Lucas with the same intensity he would a particularly interesting Pokemon. The young man shifted uncomfortably on his feet. Professor Oak was stern and to the point, but he also had a friendliness about him that countered the intimidating property of his distinguished reputation. Professor Rowan on the other hand came off as one of those no-nonsense, old-school teachers that had no tolerance for stupidity. It didn't exactly come off as cruel or mean, but his presence with his somber tie, sweater vest and thick mustache made Lucas feel uncomfortable. When the older man grew bored with studying the teen he got back to his point, "My research is about the connections of ancient human legends to Pokemon facts. Sinnoh has the good fortune of having some of the best preserved Pokemon myths, and I see how much of that myth is really fact. I borrowed an object from another researcher in Celestic Town. All of my people are far too busy with breakthroughs to go to return it, but Samuel informed me that you would go through there anyway," The professor then snapped his fingers, "Lucas!"

"Yeah?" Replied both the teen and preteen boy.

Professor Rowan gave a puzzled glance to both boys, not being entirely sure what just happened, "Lucas..."

"Yes?" both young men responded again.

"It looks like Professor Oak never actually told you my name. My name is Lucas, too," the older of the two boys finally explained.

"Ah, I see then. I was referring to my assistant," the old man clarified.

"How about you call me Tattoed Lucas and refer to him as Assistant Lucas. That way we avoid turning this whole thing into a Monty Python sketch," The teen suggested.

"Agreed," the professor nodded curtly, "Assistant Lucas, take this young man into the main lab and get him the package that he is to deliver to Celestic Town as well as the reward we had prepared for him for doing us this favor. When you're done come back here,"

"Right away professor!" Assistant Lucas saluted happily. The younger boy motioned to the sixteen-year-old to follow.

Once again Tattoed Lucas got a chance to see the work in the lab. Science was always one of the most difficult subjects for the teen to master in school with its complex formulae and difficult theories, but while he failed at it every year, he did have a good respect for what science could do. As he watched the younger Lucas chat with some of the researchers he met down along the way to the main lab he wondered how someone so young became a researcher with such a distinguished and very intimidating Pokemon scientist, "Hey Lucas, how did you become Professor Rowan's assistant? I mean, you've got to be in what, middle school?"

"Well, I'm not _actually_ an assistant here. I mean, I don't do any of the experiments or research," Assitant Lucas explained as they finally arrived at the main lab. This was the first room the Mohawked Trainer has seen when first passing down the hall, "My dad is Professor Rowan's top aide, so I've been around the lab my whole life. When I'm not at school I'm volunteering here. It's my dream to become a great scientist like the professor. In fact, the only time I've been away from the lab is when I went on a Pokemon Journey when I turned ten,"

The older Lucas suddenly remembered seeing the name of another boy with his name on all the plaques outside all the Gyms he had been to, "So you got all your badges?"

"Yup! All my badges but not a Championship. I was never that serious about it, not like my friend Dawn," Yet another time that the teen had heard about the current female Champion. Saturn had mentioned her, though not by name, and the Gym Leader Barry talked about being her friend as well, "Yup, me, Dawn and Barry all went on a Journey together. Dawn and Barry lived in the next town over, which if you can imagine is even smaller than Sandgem. We've been friends all our lives,"

"Ah yes. Barry." the tattooed young man grumbled.

"I take it you've challenged him recently at his new Gym. Barry does take...getting used to. He's a good guy once you get to know him. Problem is that he's always fifty light years ahead of everybody, including himself sometimes,"Assistant Lucas explained with a sigh before walking over to storage shelf and pulling a two-foot-long box off of one of the higher levels, "This is the package we need you to deliver. And this is what Professor Rowan wanted me to give you. It's the Hidden Machine for the move Surf. Unless you have it already, the professor wasn't sure. If you do we can get you something else,"

"No, that's great, I've been needing Surf. I appreciate it, thank you," the teen Lucas stated gratefully as he carefully put the long package into his bag. With the task complete the two returned to the professor, who was once again absorbed with his work. Once again Assistant Lucas had to practically scream to get the old man's attention.

"Ah, welcome back. Tattooed Lucas, the person you will be delivering the package to is a woman named Cynthia, make sure you give it to her and only her. The item you are carrying is quite valuable for its age if not just its intrinsic value. The other thing I want to do before you leave on your task is to see your Pokedex. Samuel charged you with filling it out and I want to see how well you are doing," Professor Rowan explained. The teen Lucas reached into one of his vest pockets and handed the device over to the man's waiting hand. The professor wasted no time as he began pressing various buttons on the device, his expression concentrated but revealing no other emotion. Satisfied with whatever information he received, he handed the Pokedex back to its owner, "How long have you been Training, young man?"

"Um, lessee. Like four or five months now, I think. I didn't really pay attention," teen Lucas shrugged.

"I see, I see," Rowan mused, "You do have a pretty good selection of Pokemon, including quite a few rare ones. But you've seen far more Pokemon than you've caught. Sinnoh has an amazing diversity, try to make sure you don't just rely on bumping into new Pokemon along the way. Start fishing more, it seems the only Pokemon you caught with a rod is a Magikarp. Also check out the honey trees that are all around Sinnoh, that's the only way to catch creatures like Combee,"

"Yes sir," the young Trainer mumbled somewhat sheepishly.

"There is no need to be upset. You haven't been doing half-bad. I just want to see you succeed for both your sake as well as we Pokemon Researchers. In fact I can give you another Pokemon to help fill up your Pokedex," The professor reached into a drawer on his desk and pulled out three Pokeballs, "Samuel told me you received one of his starters but I don't see why you shouldn't have one of mine too. After all, you did start in the Sinnoh region and not Kanto. You have the option of Turtwig, a grass-type, Chimchar, a fire-type and Piplup, a water-type,"

"Why are professors so generous with giving away Pokemon?" the teen thought aloud as he looked at the three Pokeballs he was offered.

"I told you, it's in our interest to see successful Trainers who catch lots of Pokemon. Trainers that start out with weaker Pokemon like Rattata and Bidoof rarely go very far in the League or with Pokemon research," Rowan commented dryly.

"Then I'd like Turtwig, I don't have a lot of grass-types yet," Lucas concluded as he selected his new Pokemon.

"Good. Since that's the last of the business I have with you today I'll let you get on your way. When you finish your delivery call Samuel and he'll let me know. Good luck Tattooed Lucas and keep filling in that Pokedex!" With that final order Professor Rowan sent Lucas on his way to Celestic Town.


	32. Chapter 32 Legend of the Azure Flute

Chapter 32: Legend of the Azure Flute

It felt strange for Lucas to be in Solceon Town again. After getting his sixth badge, the teen Trainer went to Sandgem Town to pick up a package from Professor Rowan as a favor to Professor Oak. The package was to be delivered to a woman in Celestic Town, but to get to Celestic Town required going back to Solceon. It was now over a month since the last time the young man was here. Last time he was in the tiny, one road city it was with his rival/friend Morgan. When he was on his way to the Gym in Veilstone, she parted ways with him at the cafe up on Route 210 to go to Celestic Town herself. This time he was all alone, Morgan now on her way to Hoenn. She had said Celestic Town was a place known for ancient supernatural forces and it made him curious to see what was in the package the old professor had gave him.

If it were up to the teen, he would have gone straight to Celestic Town, however, having never been there before he had no way of guiding his Pokemon to the city via flight. The Trainer would have to hoof it, and the trip would take several days. Not wasting any time, Lucas went to the task of restocking provisions. As his purchases were rung up he realized his funds were beginning to grow low, it had been a while since facing another Trainer, and without the winnings from the Gym in Canaclave, his budget was growing thin. Maybe the long trip wasn't such a bad thing, it gave him plenty of opportunity to stumble across some traveling Trainers and both restock his coffers and strengthen his Pokemon. With just two Gyms to go, the threat of facing the Elite Four and their highly skilled teams was growing close. There would be no lucky moves or last-minute gimmicks that would save Lucas against them.

With food for himself and medicine for his Pokemon now weighing down his heavy duffel bag, Lucas headed back to the cafe at the top of Route 210. He stood facing the cafe for several minutes, debating on whether or not to stop in for a meal before beginning his trip. This had been the restaurant that he and Morgan ate at before parting ways the first time, and a piece of him was nostalgic to go back in, but in the end he decided against it. Between his shrinking funds and the long trip ahead of him, a detour for memories' sake simply didn't make sense.

Accessing the Pokevice again, the teen double-checked to see if there was a faster way to his destination. There was no way around it, even at a fast walk it would take two days to get to Celestic Town. He picked up his pace slightly when he got an idea. He pulled his red and black bicycle out of his bag and started peddling. The well-intentioned but ultimately bad idea didn't last long when turning a corner, the teen ran into a patch of thick, tall grass like a natural shag carpet that snagged his spokes and sent the boy flying over the handlebars. Two days it would have to be, like it or not. Dragging himself up from the cushioned landing, the Trainer put his now damaged bike away and worked on shoving himself through the virtual forest of tall grass.

Towards the afternoon as the sun was getting especially hot, the heat seemed to get aggravated as a swampy mugginess filled the air. Soon the humidity transformed into fog, slowing Lucas down even further. First not being able to ride his bike, then struggling through the grasslands and now the fog. The trip looked like it was going to last closer to three days instead of two. Now that it was official that he wasn't going to get where he needed to in a hurry, the teen finally accepted the situation and started walking at a more leisurely pace. Lucas recognized immediately that this was the Pokemon-caused fog and though still none of his Pokemon knew Defog, he was more prepared to handle the obstacle.

The teen tread carefully as he discovered the route to Celestic Town was fairly hazardous. Between patches of grass so thick it was like walking through a fur coat, there were various cliffs and narrow paths that navigated around the rock formations that got bigger as Lucas approached Mt. Coronet once more. The thick fog also allowed for Pokemon ambushes from bad tempered Golbat and nasty Machoke that kept the Trainer on his toes. The tough terrain, the Pokemon and the strange whistle Lucas kept hearing in the bushes made the teen hyper-alert, expecting a new danger with every step. As Lucas passed underneath a tall fir tree, a black blur swooped down and ambushed the teen. He finally discovered what was behind the eerie whistling, it was Swablu, the tiny bird Pokemon that had feathers like fluffy clouds. Lucas added the Pokemon to his collection and felt himself ease up slightly, until another black shadow appeared behind him. The afternoon was winding down and the shape was unlike any Pokemon the young man had ever seen. Silently the shape approached, trapping Lucas between the narrow cliff he just navigated and unknown terrain ahead.

"I've been waiting for a Trainer to pass by here," said a Youngster as he stepped forward, his image clear now that he was closer to the teen.

"Jesus Christ! You scared the hell out of me!" Lucas yelled clutching his chest, "You shouldn't sneak up on a person like that in this fog. I could have fallen off of this cliff, or just thrown your ass off of it,"

With the underhanded approach Lucas was more than ready for a fight. The now more experienced Trainer made short work of his opponent. The Youngster's two Bibarel were no match for the teen's team. Though the match was short it proved valuable for two reasons. First, Lucas' funds were finally getting restored and secondly Lucas learned to anticipate Trainers in certain areas.

After the first Youngster, Lucas ran into a few more and discovered a pattern. Every time there was an area that was especially safe: outside the grass, just beyond the small ponds and just past the cliffs there would be a Trainer. No longer surprised by the random attacks, Lucas could pick up his pace again.

With the fog it made gauging his distance with the Pokevice difficult, but for the first day he figured he was past most of the marshy areas and the rest of his trip would take place on and between the largest of the rock formations. He would know that he was almost at Celestic Town when he would cross a long bridge that was built in front of a waterfall, similar to the one he passed when first arriving in Hearthome City with the Coordinator Ashley and her friends. Lucas made camp for the night and prepared for the next day's travels.

The second day was similar to the first, the Pokemon-created fog not letting up and shrouding all obstacles and hazards. And like yesterday, Trainers would position themselves in places most convenient to ambush unsuspecting Trainers and try to take advantage of the surprise in their battles. Lucas was now fully ready for these people, not allowing such minor head games to affect his strategies. Though not caught off-guard, the battles were becoming harder and harder as the Trainers he ran into proved to be stronger and more experienced than the Youngsters he had dealt with the previous day. This road also contained the Ace Trainers, people around his age who had several years experience and well trained, well balanced teams as well as the Dragon Tamers, the black-clad and caped Trainers who were experts in dragon-types. Even with these new challenges Lucas continued to succeed and move forward to his goal of Celestic Town. It wasn't until the afternoon of the third day that Lucas ran into real trouble.

Though the Trainers close to Celestic proved stronger and stronger the closer he got to the city, the teen still focused on his other goal of training his Buneary, Stella. In each battle, even against the difficult dragon-types the normal-type became a more powerful fighter, a testament to her strong bloodlines from Ashley's Pokemon, but her attitude towards Lucas didn't seem to improve at all. Though Lucas tried his hardest to treat the Pokemon with love and happiness after every battle, she still showed no signs of liking her Trainer.

After a victory against an Ace Trainer whose team was made up of a Probopass, an Ivysaur and a Floatzel, a battle sealed by the now powerful, but still bad-tempered Buneary, a small rock slide erupted behind the Trainers. Both Lucas and his opponent dodged to the side, unharmed by the falling rocks, but as the dust dissipated into the fog the Mohawked teen noticed his Pokemon had gone missing. Ignoring the winnings offered by the Ace Trainer he had just beaten, Lucas ran off frantically, recognizing the shrill scream Stella always gave off in fear. The rock slide had startled her as badly as it had the two Trainers, and in terror she ran off into the unknowns of the thick fog.

"Stella! Stella!" Lucas screamed into the murky mist, racing the keep up with the pace of the shrieking Pokemon that was still running blindly away from him. He could still hear her, but her screams were becoming less frequent, she was calming down slightly and slowing down, but the Trainer still couldn't see his lost Pokemon. He continued to cry out her name, sending out Gizmo to help with the search. He cursed himself in the increasingly thick fog, furious that he was unable to win his Pokemon's affections, especially in this time when he needed her to like him most. Her initial fear from the rocks may have ended, but soon her fear from unfamiliar surroundings would overwhelm her, and her fear of him would outweigh any obedience she had for her Trainer. He stopped calling her name, realizing his voice was not helping the situation, but he continued the search, focusing his eyes into the fog hoping for any sign of her.

He was so concentrated on concern for Stella he didn't notice the edge of the cliff just ahead of him. Gizmo let out a desperate 'Vii!' but Lucas heard it too late. He tumbled over the edge, his back and limbs slamming into the rocky walls until he mercifully landed in a patch of softened dirt. Fortune prevented him from any fatal injuries, he didn't even break any bones, but his face and back were cut to shreds and bleeding, and the wind was entirely knocked from his body, leaving him struggling for air.

Gizmo hopped down the rock walls, running to check on his fallen master. Lucas was unable to speak, only a hacking rattle coming from his mouth as the Eevee worryingly nudged him. The teen tried to concentrate on relaxing his diaphragm to bring his breathing back to normal and gauging how badly he was hurt. While bleeding profusely, the cuts on his back weren't deep. The worst cut was the one on his face, it ran from near his temple all the way to his chin. With a shaking hand he could it feel it flapping slightly, it would definitely require stitches. He still wasn't able to move yet, but his breathing was beginning to steady and his lungs could take in more and more air. In between Gizmo's sounds of concern Lucas suddenly registered a second noise.

"Bun, bun," Lucas tipped his head over to the right and looked between two boulders wedged together. Stella was in a small crevice under the boulders crying and shaking in fear. Lucas immediately forgot about his own pain and worried about Stella.

"Stella!" He croaked, his voice altered by his limited breath. The Pokemon looked up towards her Trainer but didn't move, too frozen in fear to think clearly. Lucas looked sadly at his terrified Pokemon, still just as scared of him as she was her surroundings. He still was unable to move very well, his limbs as stunned as his lungs, so he lied there, staring at his Pokemon, "You know, this reminds me of the day you were born. It was raining and I couldn't see where I was going and I went ass over teakettle off a cliff just like right now. I was all mad and stupid and then I realized I landed on your egg. I was so terrified when I saw the cracks. I was sure I'd hurt you. Then the shell fell away and you squinted in the rain and you looked up at me with those big eyes of yours. It was one of the most amazing experiences of my life," As Lucas spoke the frightened Buneary continued to stare back at him, her expression difficult to read as she stayed frozen in her hiding spot, "Then I go and do it again. When you ran off I was just as scared as that day, I didn't pay attention in this pea soup and just about broke my neck. And then I see you and suddenly all that doesn't matter any more. I really don't ever care if you like me, I'm just glad to see you okay. I think that's all that will ever matter to me,"

Lucas closed his eyes with a sigh when he felt something soft bump his hand. He opened his eyes and lifted his head slightly to see Stella nudging his fingers. Gently he lifted his hand up and put it on her head, stroking her soft fur. She nuzzled closer to him, her eyes closed and completely relaxed, all her fear gone.

The fog cleared up almost instantly as Lucas walked into Celestic Town, opening up to a bright blue sky shining down on a small traditional town in the shadow of massive Mt. Coronet. Most of the people were dressed in kimonos and hakamas and even those in modern street clothes chose more muted colors. It reminded Lucas strongly of Johto with cities like Violet and Ecruteak frozen in a past time. The city was built in a circle, the Pokemon Center clashing with the old wooden buildings with sliding doors and thatched straw roofs. Though the teen Trainer intended to first hit the Center to heal his Pokemon as well as get his own wounds checked, he found himself drawn to the middle of town.

Going down a set of steps to the town's center Lucas came face to face with a small wooden altar in front of the entrance to a cave. The altar was similar to the one Lucas had heard about in the Ilex Forest back home, built to honor the mythic time traveler that was said to be the area's guardian. The teen wondered if this altar served a similar purpose. The young man passed the altar, its shelf set with offerings of flowers and Pokemon food, into the cave itself. Though the cave was natural, the walls were covered with man-made drawings. The cavern was small and was devoid of Pokemon, not even Zubat rested inside. Passing a small pool of water that shimmered in the small streams of sunlight coming from cracks in the ceiling, the Trainer quickly reached the back of the cave and carefully examined the large mural. In an ancient style were three strange-looking creatures surrounding an unfamiliar symbol. The teen stared at the image, still wondering what the shrine represented.

"Azelf, Mesprit and Uxie, the three Pokemon who were said to be creators of the human mind," a voice behind the teen spoke suddenly. Lucas spun around to come face to face with a tall, beautiful, blond woman in black clothes. She had a seriousness and poise that made her seem glamorous like a model. Though she was older than him, Lucas could feel his face reddening and the cut on his check start to bleed again from the sudden rush of blood to his head, as well as other places.

"Um, oh man, I'm sorry. Am I not supposed to be in here?" the teen boy babbled stupidly.

The woman smiled gently at him, making his knees weaken slightly, "No, you're perfectly fine to be in here, Lucas,"

Lucas managed to think past his new-found feelings temporarily, "Hey, how do you know my name?"

"When Professor Rowan called me he said I'd know his delivery boy because he'd have a red Mohawk , an Eevee and was very kind to Pokemon. In this town you might see someone with one or the other, but very rarely both. And that Buneary sleeping in your arms makes three for three," The woman's smile widened even further as she pointed out the normal-type curled up in his arms and the Eevee on his shoulder.

"I guess that means you're Cynthia,"

The woman nodded, "That I am," She stepped towards Lucas for a more formal greeting when she spotted his injuries, "Goodness, what happened to your face?"

"I took a spill off a cliff on my way over here," Lucas suddenly remembered his task and carefully navigated his duffel bag between his two Pokemon to pull out the package Professor Rowan had given him, "Here's the thing the professor wanted me to give back to you,"

Cynthia took the package, "Thank you very much, Lucas. But I think it would be best if you came with me to my house,"

"Y-your house?" Lucas stammered, feeling his face get even redder. Cynthia gave him a cheerful nod and without protest the teen followed the older woman out of the cave to the largest house in town.

Cynthia slipped off her shoes and Lucas followed suit as they entered the traditional wooden house set on stilts. The house was made of few rooms, with straw mats on the ground and low-built tables and cushions in place of the taller tables and chairs the teen boy was more used to. The only modern-looking piece of furniture he could see in the home was a large glass display case that held three large glass orbs on cushions and an empty cushion on a second shelf, "Have a seat at the table, I just want to put this away first," Lucas did as he was asked and the blond woman opened the box to pull out a long, richly blue flute made of some kind of translucent stone or glass. Running down the side of most of the instrument was a long crack that made Lucas' heart sink.

"I am so sorry!" the young man blurted as the woman unlocked the display case, "When I fell I must have landed on it. Professor Rowan told me how valuable it is, but it really was an accident. My Buneary ran off and-"

"Lucas, it's alright. This crack has been on the side of the Azure Flute for at least the past two hundred years," Cynthia smiled reassuringly as she finished putting the item away and relocked the case.

"Azure Flute?"

"Yes, the Azure Flute was created hundreds of years ago, it is said that when the instrument is played at the Spear Pillar, the Creator will appear," the blond woman explained but then changed gears, "Those wounds do look fairly bad. This town doesn't have a normal doctor, but my grandmother is the local healer. I've learned quite a lot from her so let me take care of those cuts for you. You don't want an infection,"

"Um, sure, I guess that's okay," Lucas said more shyly than he would have liked. Though he wasn't tripping over himself like he did with Ashley, Cynthia's beauty was still very intimidating to him. As the woman brought in a tray of jars and clean rags, Lucas looked back over to the display case, "Summoning the Creator? Then why would Professor Rowan care about something like that? He studies Pokemon myths, right?"

Cynthia knelt down next the teen and began cleaning the wound on his cheek. The liquid she used didn't smell like any disinfectant Lucas had ever encountered before, it smelled more like a very herbal cologne, "That's because Creator is supposed to _be_ a Pokemon, hence the professor's interest. Sinnoh legends state that in the beginning there was nothing but darkness. Then a great egg appeared. When this egg hatched, the Pokemon Arceus was born. It then created the Palkia the Pokemon of space, Dialga the Pokemon of time and Giratina, the Pokemon of Chaos. These Pokemon went around, shaping stars and planets and the rest of the universe. When Arceus had finished, it was supposed have gone to rest and created a great mountain for its sleeping place, Mt. Coronet, and thus created the Sinnoh region. When the Azure Flute is played at Spear Pillar, the pinnacle of Coronet, Arceus is supposed to awaken,"

"Wow, the idea that a Pokemon created a universe, that's really something to think about," Lucas said in wonder. Now Cynthia had rubbed the wound with a salve that smelled like rotten lettuce and made his face almost completely numb as she was getting ready to stitch it.

"Virtually every region has its own creation myth associated with Pokemon. Hoenn believes that the sky, the land and the sea were created by a trio of Pokemon that if they every met again would cause a war. Kanto believes that all living things come from a single Pokemon. Johto believes in the wanderers who cross the land and serve the Guardian of the Sky, as well as the King of the Sea who watches the waters. It makes sense that especially powerful, mythic Pokemon would be regarded as kinds of deities by ancient peoples. Professor Rowan was studying the flute to see if Arceus is even real. Of all the Pokemon studied by researchers, we know the least about Arceus,"

"Did he try the flute at Mt. Coronet?"

"Unfortunately there isn't much point to try. The flute hasn't been working for hundreds of years. It is said it was broken on purpose to prevent the hubris of trying to summon the Creator. The professor wanted to study the age and the material of the flute to see if it could be reproduced, or if it possessed any kind of attributes that would make it particularly appealing to Pokemon. We may never find Arceus, and if the legends I heard growing up in this village are true, it's probably for the best," Cynthia snipped the remainder of the suture as she finished the last stitch, "The salves may be traditional but this suture is modern medical technology. You won't need to have them removed, they'll dissolve on their own. And since I'm done with your face, I now need to look at your back. You're going to have to take off your shirt for me to get to it,"

As Lucas registered what Cynthia was telling him what to do next after hearing the legends, the teen could feel his blush spread to his shoulders and chest.


	33. Chapter 33 Myth of the Mystic Milotic

Chapter 33: Myth of the Mystic Milotic

After a difficult struggle from Solceon Town to Celestic Town Lucas managed to achieve two very important goals. The first being that he finally got his Buneary Stella to love and trust him. The second, he had delivered the package from Professor Rowan to its recipient, a woman named Cynthia. In Celestic Town he discovered several things: that the package contained the Azure Flute, an object said to be able to summon the creator Pokemon Arceus and that Cynthia was a very beautiful woman that Lucas had quickly developed a crush on. Which is what made his current situation especially awkward for him.

He was sitting in Cynthia's living room, shirtless, as the woman tended the wounds on his back he had received after tumbling off of a cliff in the foggy conditions outside of Celestic Town. The blond was now dabbing the deeper of the scrapes with a cotton ball soaked in an herbal medicine. Lucas tried desperately to focus his brain on something besides the fact that he was half-naked around a gorgeous woman, but when he let out an involuntary yelp, Cynthia blew on the solution to try to lessen the sting. For Lucas, an act like that did not help him in the least. He tried to bring his focus back to the glass display case Cynthia kept in the front room of her home. The bottom shelf was the resting place for the Azure Flute, the object he had delivered, but on the top shelf were the three glass orbs that he had seen earlier, and after hearing about the flute, he wondered what these objects were for.

"Done." Cynthia announced, "You can put your shirt back on,"

With great relief Lucas dressed. For all his cockiness, it seemed like he would never shake the awkwardness and shyness he felt around people he found attractive, "Thanks for doing that,"

"No, thank you Lucas for bringing the Azure Flute back. I'm just sorry you got so hurt on your way here. The fog does make coming here quite dangerous, which is why most people choose going through Eterna rather than here to get to Snowpoint City. I assume that's where your next stop is. If Professor Rowan was correct, you are going there for your seventh badge," Cynthia put her medical supplies away except for a small clay jar. She came back with a tray of tea and Japanese sweets.

"Yeah, that's right," Lucas eyed the tea tray nervously. He had never had any kind of formal tea before, and manners in general were not his forte. Cynthia smiled graciously at him and prepared him a cup. She made slow gestures with her own tea and the teen mimicked her actions. When it looked like he understood how he was to behave with small thoughtful sips and small bites of the treats, the woman continued the conversation.

"The trail to Snowpoint City is very long and very arduous," She explained between her small refined sips. Though Lucas had gotten a hang of how to handle the food, he still moved the cup in his hand more than drink from it, "There are no Pokemon Centers between here and Snowpoint. It takes at least a week to get through the mountain, if not longer if there have been cave-ins, and once you get to the northern face of the mountain it's still several more days to get to the city. It may take you as long as two weeks, if conditions are clear. But during this time of the year there are frequent blizzards. It's extremely important that you are as prepared as possible before you start the journey, because even turning back will be difficult. Fly won't work in the mountain, and many Pokemon have a hard time flying in the snow. In addition to medical supplies for your Pokemon it is vital as well to have plenty of food and supplies for yourself. It seems you prefer shirts without sleeves but make sure that have a good coat and protection from the snow and ice. And make sure you are extremely well rested and healthy before even starting the trek. I wouldn't even think of it until your back and face are healed at the very least. There is a Pokemon Center in town but you are more than welcome to stay with my grandmother and myself if you need to,"

The last offer had Lucas just about drop his small ceramic cup. He knew staying with Cynthia would not be a good idea, he would never get a moment's rest being under the same roof where she slept, especially if his mind started wandering towards what she slept in—or didn't sleep in. "Thanks a lot Cynthia, but it's probably best if I stay at the Center,"

The blond woman smiled and nodded, "That's your decision. In the meantime I want you to take this salve with you and put it on your face at least three times a day. It will help prevent that cut on your face from scarring. And please stop by before you leave for Snowpoint,"

Cynthia pushed the small clay jar containing the salve towards Lucas. He nodded gratefully and placed the jar into his bag. Scooping up Gizmo and the still sleeping Stella, the teen headed for the Pokemon Center, "Thank you Cynthia, and I will,"

Following Cynthia's advice, Lucas stayed in Celestic Town to rest up for his journey to Snowpoint. It was the first time he had properly rested in months, and it was only then that he realized how much of a strain he had put on himself since starting his Journey. He even found himself sleeping into the afternoons again because he was so tired. He also started stocking up on as many Pokemon medicines and as much food as he could carry, as well as investing in a thick coat that the shop owner had promised was both heavily insulated and waterproof. Lucas was religious about applying the salve Cynthia had given him. After seeing the full extent of the damage in a mirror at the Pokemon Center, the teen both appreciated his luck for not getting hurt worse, and for Cynthia's help. Lucas still found himself deeply enamored by the beautiful, older blond woman, but it helped to not be staying at her home. After nearly a week when most of the scabs on his back were gone, he decided he was ready for the mountain, and ready to see Cynthia one more time.

He met her at the edge of Celestic Town, just where the rock formations start up again in the foothills of Mt. Coronet. With her gentle, sophisticated smile she greeted the younger man, "I'm glad I'm able to see you off, Lucas,"

"Yeah, thanks for all your help and advice. I really appreciate it," Lucas replied awkwardly, not entirely sure what else he should say.

"I appreciate you bringing back the Azure Flute. And it was a great pleasure to meet you. Both Professor Rowan and Professor Oak told me a great deal about you before you arrived here. I've heard nothing but good things," Cynthia smiled widely and added ominously, "I expect I will be seeing you again fairly soon,"

Lucas gave one more smile back and headed past her to once again enter Mt. Coronet.

It had been months since the teen Trainer last set foot in the mountain. The last time he had been here was when he was on his way to Hearthome City for his third badge, a time that now felt very long ago. Last time the trip had taken about three days, already a long time without access to a Pokemon Center, a situation aggravated by the presence of Team Cosmic. Cosmic on his mind again made him think back to what their superior, Major Mathias, had said they were doing in the mountain. Looking for something that was supposed to sleep here. Lucas then thought back to the Azure Flute, wondering if there was a connection between the two. The idea made him shudder.

Lucas refocused on the current journey. This trip would take far more than three days. He would have to pace himself and watch his supplies more carefully than any other of his travels. The first few days the Trainer spent time navigating past large boulders and misty caverns as he headed deeper and deeper into the bowels of the mountain. He knew he had to be careful. The police officer from Oreburg City had warned the boy even the marked paths were easy to get lost in, and with the artificial lamps guiding him it was still easy to get disoriented. As he entered a large cavern on his fourth day in, he found something he never would have expected. People.

Dozens and dozens of people. More accurately it looked like most of them were the Fisherman Trainers. They had set up the cavern near a large underground lake like a festival. There were tents for resting and sleeping as well as booths selling fishing gear and food like some sort of surreal convention. As the fishermen chatted amongst each other and cast their lines in the cloudy mountain water, Lucas spotted someone familiar. It was the Fisherman he met outside of Eterna the day he caught his first Pokemon, the Fisherman who gave him the beat-up rod he used to catch Franky.

Lucas ran over to the man cheerfully, "Hey! What's going on!"

"Well if it isn't my old friend, Lucas. How're ya young fella?" the man clapped the teen on the shoulder so hard he just about knocked the boy over, "And how's that Magikarp holding up?"

"It's been a long time," Lucas admitted, "And I'm great. I'm on my way to Snowpoint for my seventh badge and Franky is a Gyrados now if you can believe it,"

"Wonderful, just wonderful! You wouldn't mind showing an old Fisherman your Pokemon, now would you?" The Fisherman asked eagerly.

"Not a problem," Lucas released his happy Gyrados to show the man. Franky demonstrated his sweet temperament and even allowed the man to rub his belly. But the easygoing Pokemon seemed oddly distracted by the large underground lake, constantly staring back to the water every time his Trainer tried to catch his attention. Confused but unconcerned about his Pokemon's behavior, Lucas changed back to his original subject, "What's going on around here, anyway? Some kind of festival or something?"

"Nah, even better. Rumor has it that there's a wild Milotic around here," the Fisherman said excitedly.

"Milotic?" Lucas replied in confusion.

The Fisherman reached into one of his pockets and pulled out a dogeared guide to water Pokemon for fishers. The man flipped to a page that showed one Pokemon that looks like an emaciated Magikarp with sickly gray scales, deep circles under its eyes and a vacant expression. Next to it was an arrow pointing to a beautiful serpent-like Pokemon with rainbow colored scales and elaborate head markings, "Milotic are extremely hard to get Pokemon. They only evolve from Feebas, which despite their looks are next to impossible to find. In Sinnoh you can only find them in this underground lake. To get one to evolve requires all sorts of grooming to improve its Beauty levels. A wild Milotic is unheard of. So now that there's a rumor that there's one out here, every Fisherman in Sinnoh is trying to catch it,"

"Wow, a wild, rare Pokemon," Despite himself Lucas found himself caught up in the contagious excitement of the fishers, and decided to try to go after the Pokemon himself. After all, Professor Rowan encouraged him to work more on filling his Pokedex, including more fishing. Like the rest of the Fisherman, Lucas went to the water's edge and started casting his line.

After several hours, none of the Fisherman caught sight of the Milotic. Lucas got the opportunity to see many wild, far worse tempered than Franky, Gyardos as well as Barboach and Goldeen that the teen added to his collection. Soon due to fatigue and frustration, Lucas decided to quit for the day and make camp. As he set out his sleeping bag and checked on the rest of his team, he found that Franky was still staring wistfully at the water. Lucas scratched his Pokemon's scales in the way he liked and even offered to throw a stick, but the normally sweet Gyrados seemed virtually depressed, "What is it, boy? Something wrong?"

Franky gently headbutted his Trainer reassuringly, so Lucas skeptically went to bed, still frequently checking on his water-type until sleep overtook him. With the teen finally asleep, the Gyrados slithered closer to the water's edge and sighed. The reason for his sadness was simple. Before being caught by Lucas and taken across the region by his loving Trainer this lake was originally his home. And he missed someone very terribly.

This lake connected to many of the small streams and ponds in Eterna and many years ago Franky had left for one of those streams. Life was always hard for Magikarp. They were weak Pokemon, often mocked by humans and Pokemon alike, but Franky had one special friend, someone who knew the hardships of life in the tumultuous lake and the hurt of mockery for their appearance and their strengths, a female Feebas that he spent all his time with.

He remembered the first time he met her, a school of Goldeen were teasing her terribly. Calling her ugly and stupid, slapping her with their tails until she swam for dear life to the hiding spot Franky was using. At first she was worried he'd kick her out, but when they got to talking to realized how much they had in common. They both were mocked and chased, and they both dreamed of the day they would evolve. Franky would become an all-powerful Gyrados and would take revenge against the Pokemon he hated, she would become a beautiful Milotic while the Goldeen she hated would just turn into stupid, fanged Seakings no prettier than any other Pokemon. One day when life became too hard for Franky, he swam the difficult underwater channels to the calmer waters of the ponds outside Eterna City, leaving the Feebas behind. He felt bad for her, but he couldn't take life in the lake anymore.

Then one day a funny-looking human with metal in his face and ink on his skin caught him on his line. Unlike the others he didn't throw him back or complain. The human greeted Franky with joy and asked the Pokemon to join his team. He gave him a name and praised him after every battle, even if all he could do was flop helplessly on the ground. Franky grew to love Lucas, the human who smiled whenever he saw him, whose Pokemon team greeted him as a friend. All that hate and anger vanished, even when he became the Gyrados he always dreamed to be. Traveling with Lucas had been a wonderful experience, but now that he returned to the underground lake, Franky began to be filled with regret. Did someone ever catch the Feebas? Did she survive the harsh life of these waters, or was she gone forever? Franky continued to look to the water, when a pair of glowing eyes matched his just below the surface. But just before the Gyrados could take a second look, the pair of eyes were gone.

The next morning Lucas tried his luck again with fishing. There were more people in the caverns now as the rumor of the wild Milotic spread. The teen was worried someone would catch the Pokemon before he even had a chance to see it, but it seemed like this would not be the case. Despite the now hundreds of people whipping fishing line in and out of the water, snagging every kind of water-type imaginable, not a single Trainer spotted any sign of the Milotic. Time wore on people's patience, including Lucas'. Between the constant Gyrados attacks and the depressing, sensory distorting effects of the sunless cave, people started giving up and leaving the cavern. After several days the fishing carnival seemed to pack up and all but the most stubborn Fisherman remained as not a single sign of a Milotic in the lake existed. Lucas was seriously considering quitting as well, realizing he was delaying a journey that would take several more days just to leave the mountain, it was foolish to stall leaving for what was quickly proving to be just a hoax. Yet a gut instinct told him something was definitely still in the water.

An instinct Franky shared. During the day he would help Lucas fight off the angry Pokemon that were caught on the line instead of the Milotic while at night the Gyrados would wander around the water's edge looking for any sign that the friend he abandoned could still be in the lake. While he couldn't find her, he couldn't shake the feeling someone was watching him from the water. One Lucas' fifth day of fishing, Gizmo stretched and wandered away from Lucas' side to talk with his teammate.

"_What's wrong? Lucas is getting worried about you. And honestly I am a bit, too_," Gizmo chirped to the much larger water-type.

"_I'm looking for someone I left long ago, but I'm beginning to think she's not here anymore,_" Franky replied sadly.

"_Have you tried doing something besides looking?_" asked the Eevee.

"_Like what?_" the Gyrados replied in confusion.

"_This water is very deep, right? That's why Lucas can keep catching all those other Gyrados and never catch the same one twice. I can't imagine your kind would like cramped conditions much, so that water must go on a long time to fit all of you in it_," Gizmo proposed, "_Looking just at the water's surface would be like going through a house and not looking behind any doors. Maybe you need to call for your friend instead of just looking for her,_"

Nodding in agreement Franky let out a low rumble from his throat. Once again a pair of glowing eyes appeared below the water, but before the Gyrados could get a better look, the eyes vanished.

By the seventh day by the lake Lucas had to make a decision. If he didn't leave that day he would have to march all the way back to Celestic and restock his supplies again, slowing his progress to Snowpoint by possibly another two weeks. Gut instinct or not, he couldn't afford to waste time when the next leg of his journey would be the most hazardous. But he had to try one last time. He sat by the water's edge and cast his line a final time, Franky curled around his body and looking into the water just as intensely. Franky insisted in staying outside of his Pokeball, and with his crestfallen state, Lucas decided to humor his Pokemon. Once again the cast was a bust, nothing on the line but the umpteenth Whiscash the teen Trainer had run into. He quickly got it off the line again before it could use its Earthquake attack and got up to walk away from the lake. As he turned away Franky let out a desperate roar. Spinning on his heels Lucas focused his eyes on the middle of the lake to a head breaking just above the water's surface. He recognized the Pokemon instantly from the picture in the Fisherman's guide. It was the Milotic!

He wasn't the only one to spot it. The few remaining fisherman rushed to where Lucas was standing and yelled to each other. The eager Trainers shoved the teen out of the way and began throwing their lines in at a frenzy to try to snag the Pokemon. Realizing its danger, the Milotic dove back into the cloudy lake's water. Before anyone could react, Franky let out another sad growl and dove into the water himself.

"Franky!" Lucas screamed out after his normally loyal Pokemon. The young man was very worried now. The Gyrados' strange behavior of the past few days left him greatly concerned, but now that Franky ran away Lucas had no idea what to do. He had no other water-types on his team to try to go after him, and he couldn't go back to the Pokemon Center in Celestic and risk the Pokemon being on his own for so long. All he could do was wait and hope that nothing serious would happen to the first Pokemon he ever caught in the wild.


	34. Chapter 34 Land of Snow and Ice

Chapter 34: Land of Snow and Ice

Franky the Gyrados swam with all his might. While traveling to the next Gym in Snowpoint City, his Trainer Lucas had stopped by the underground lake in the bowels of Mt. Coronet where he was born and lived as a Magikarp. While his Trainer and several other humans were looking for a wild Milotic said to live here, Franky wanted to find the Feebas who was his only friend in the violent waters of the mountain water source. After several days of searching and calling, he and his Trainer and finally spotted the Milotic. Now the Gyrados was chasing after it, hoping it might know something about the fate of his friend.

"_Please wait!_" the Gyrados begged with a mighty roar, the other water-type showing no signs of slowing down. He exerted himself further, but he was growing fatigued, his stamina for swimming lessened by his travels in a Pokeball. "_I don't want to hurt you! I just want to know if you've seen my friend!_"

The Milotic finally stopped and turned around to face the other serpent-like Pokemon, "_What friend?_"

"_I was born in these waters and I had a friend who was a Feebas. I know you've been watching me for several days now so maybe you might know something about her. I left her here many years ago, scared that if I stayed here I'd die. I regret that very much, I regret not taking her with me. Please let me know if she's still here, that she's okay. Or if she found a nice Trainer that'd make me happy too,_" Franky explained earnestly.

"_A Magikarp who became a Gyrados, just like he always dreamed. You seem very nice for a Gyrados. I remember all those promises of revenge and havoc in that small rock cave,_" the Milotic replied dryly.

"_I've had a kind Trainer, I have no reason to be angry. Lucas is the most wonderful human I've ever encountered,_" Franky stated. Suddenly a realization dawned on him, "_Wait, the rock cave. Does that mean..._"

"_It looks like we both got our dreams,_" It was her! Without another sound Franky wrapped himself around the Milotic and embraced her with all his might.

"_It's you! It really is you! I've missed you so much! I'm so sorry I left you behind! You were always my only friend! I'm glad I found you!_" Franky nuzzled the overwhelmed water-type's face. After a moment he released her, "_I don't understand, why did you run away all those times? Why not just show yourself? Were you really that angry at me?_"

"_Not at all,_" said the Milotic, "_I wasn't angry at you, I never was. You were right to try to leave. I was just too scared come with you and go to the outside world. You didn't abandon me, at least I never saw it that way. I didn't approach you because at first I wasn't sure if it was you or not, and with all those humans around...they are very scary with their sticks with strings,_"

Franky chuckled, "_They are trying to catch you,_"

"_What if I don't want to be caught?_"

"_Not all humans are bad. Like I said, Lucas is wonderful. If you became his Pokemon I know he would be very kind to you. And you'd never have to be scared again, he'd protect you. He always defended me, he'd defend you too,_" Franky explained happily.

Lucas paced the crumbling shore of the underground lake while the Fisherman wildly cast their lines. He was cursing himself for not figuring out what was wrong with his Gyrados sooner, wishing right know he knew if his Pokemon was okay. He felt his heart jump when he looked back to the water. Franky was swimming back! And swimming along side him was the wild Milotic.

"There it is!" One of the Fisherman screamed as he reached for a Pokeball, "Go Seaking!"

A hand caught the Fisherman's wrist before the ball could be thrown. "Not so fast," Lucas warned, "You aren't going to attack that Milotic,"

"Just because it's swimming by your Pokemon? That's not how the capture system works, kid. They aren't even fighting," the Fisherman snapped back. Lucas twisted the man's hand and the fisher let out a yelp.

"Anyone who goes after that Milotic is going to have to face me. I don't care of I have to battle you or get in a fist fight, but no one is touching it, got it?" Lucas was getting more serious now.

"Hey kid, who do you think you are!" One of the Fisherman barked back.

"You don't see it, do you? I;m not trying to catch the Pokemon for myself. They aren't fighting because they must like each other. That wild Pokemon must be my Pokemon's friend. And if my Gyrados has a friend I won't allow anyone to separate them." Lucas saw it immediately when Franky came back to the surface. The Gyrados no longer looked upset or wistful, he was fully back to his normal sweet behavior and nudging the Milotic playfully every few strokes. Realizing the teen boy was right, all the Fishermen backed off, giving Franky and the other Pokemon a chance to come to the shore. Lucas smiled at his Pokemon, "You had me worried pal. If you were looking for an old friend you just had to ask." Using the Pokedex the Trainer deduced something else, "Ah, she isn't just an old friend is she? She's your ladyfriend,"

Franky let a sound out of his throat in confirmation.

"I'd really miss you, but if you want to stay with her you're more than welcome," Franky was the first Pokemon Lucas ever caught. He remembered the day like it just happened. The Magikarp on the dock that he caught with his last Pokeball. The teen stayed a week at the lake to catch the Milotic just like the rest of the Fisherman, but to Lucas, his Pokemon's happiness meant more to him than anything else, even himself. To his surprise however, Franky moved forward, showing he had no intention of leaving his Trainer. More shyly and skittishly, the Milotic took half a movement behind the Gyrados, "Oh, now I get it. She wants to come with us, instead. That's totally fine by me. It's nice to meet you, Franky's lady. You really are a beautiful Pokemon, he's lucky to have you,"

The Milotic slowly got over her fear. What Franky had told her was true. Despite his funny looks, this human seemed gentle, and was even willing to release the Gyrados for her sake.

Lucas pulled out a Pokeball from his bag and offered it forward. With the tip of her nose she touched the button on the ball and was pulled inside. The ball rocked back and forth five times until it stopped moving, finalizing the capture. The teen smiled to his Gyrados, "You got a real looker, ladykiller. She definitely deserves a nice name. Let's call her Bernadette,"

It took almost three more days to finally leave the dark and confining caves of Mt. Coronet. As Lucas left the darkness he was almost blinded by the shining light of the sun reflecting on the snow. Almost immediately it began snowing again, large, hard flakes pelting the teen's still tender face and the cold feeling like a raking slap.

The teen wasn't used to snow. Johto had a very temperate climate, especially in the southern beach city of Cherrygrove. Falls were cold and crisp with chilly winds and winters brought cold rain that lasted for days, but snowfall was rare. Lucas struggled to throw on his coat and new, thicker pants and as already numb fingers pulled out his metal piercings so they wouldn't freeze on his face, before putting on his gloves. Even with his warmer clothing, the blowing snow still seemed to chill him from the inside out. The teen much preferred snow to rain, but he wasn't sure that preference was going to last. Cynthia warned him traveling in clear weather would take several days to get to Snowpoint City, and in this blizzard he would have to tack on much more time.

Just coming down off the side of the mountain to the snowy fields that made up the foothills took a day, a distance that horizontally would only cost him a few hours. The ice beneath the snow made the ground dangerously slick and Lucas didn't buy any new shoes in addition to his other winter clothes. Trainer attacks were also frequent, the cold and snow injuring his team almost as badly as his opponents. So he was most grateful that there was a rest house at the bottom of the mountain.

The rest house was for humans and not Pokemon, there was no staff on hand to heal his team but the fire and warm beds helped him recover his own body. Some of the staff warned that this house was the last place to rest before getting to Snowpoint, and suggested he stayed until the blizzard stopped. Lucas knew this would do no good. He had already spent several days at the rest house and blizzards could last for days, it could be as little as a few hours between the end of one storm and the beginning of a new one. He would have to risk the weather. Though he was in no rush to challenge the Gym, he needed to be within distance of a Pokemon Center in case of emergencies.

Wished good luck by the staff and other guests of the rest house, the young man headed back out into the cold. The going was slow and tiring. The snow was far deeper than on the side of the mountain, trapping the teen's legs up to his knees and causing him to fall on several occasions. Just as Lucas thought he was making progress, the storm kicked up to whiteout conditions.

Making camp in the snow was difficult and dangerous. His sleeping bag got immediately wet and he had no tent to block out the wind. Worst of all he couldn't make a fire. He tried to rely on Hotrod's burning tail and warm body, but the snow was damaging to his Pokemon. Lucas was not about to allow his Pokemon to get hurt just so he could keep warm. With conditions as they were, he would have to keep going, no matter how tired he was. If he fell asleep in this weather without proper shelter, he would more than likely freeze to death. The teen pulled out his Pokevice, the map leading him to Snowpoint blinking on the screen, though ice crystals quickly built up on the glowing surface.

Lucas pushed forward, now crawling in the blowing wall of frozen liquid that was constantly knocking him over. Now matter how slowly, he kept moving, hand in front of hand, knee in front of knee, ignoring his increasing exhaustion and numbness of his toes in his steel-toed boots. He kept brushing the ice off of the Pokevice's screen, following its directions to Snowpoint, relying on its powers to guide him to safety. Lucas stopped when his head bumped gently into something ahead of him. He forced himself to stand to examine the object. It was a large boulder coated with a thick coat of crystal clear ice.

"Oh no," He said to himself, "This is the Icy Rock,"

The Icy Rock was the partner to the Moss Rock, the place Lucas had found Gizmo abandoned. It was a place Trainers could use to train their Eevee to evolve to the ice-type Glaceon. It also meant that Lucas was way off course. The map showed a blinking dot indicating he was less than a mile from Snowpoint, but the Icy Rock was in fact almost two miles east of the point shown on the map. The teen was almost entirely lost. His choices were slim. He could either fly all the way back to Celestic Town, meaning he would have wasted all the time it took him to get to Snowpoint, and especially when he was so close, or he could stay lost in the frozen wilderness and possibly die. Lucas sank his head in frustration as he reached into his coat to pull out Hotrod's Pokeball when he heard a sound behind him in the blowing wind.

"Wudju! Wudju!" the noise almost sounded like one of the funny calls used in the old Three Stooges films, one of the few things Lucas and his brother John shared a common interest in. The teen turned around to come face to face with an odd-looking Pokemon that looked like a living Christmas tree. Lucas pulled out the Pokedex to discover that this was a grass and ice-type called Snover. It waved its arms frantically up and down and called out again, "Wudju! Wudju!"

Now that it had Lucas' attention it started walking away. It took a few steps forward and looked back. Seeing the teen Trainer was still standing the in the same spot, it ran back, waving its arms and calling out again. After repeating the process two more times, Lucas finally realized what the Snover wanted, "I get it, you want me to follow you, right?"

"Wudju! Wudju!" the Pokemon cried happily. Lucas figured he had nothing to lose by following the Pokemon. He still had Hotrod in case he needed to fly out, and if the funny little creature knew of some shelter, the more the better.

The Snover could move much faster in the snow than the boy could, but did its best to slow down or retrace its steps so the human could catch up. Though it was hard to tell in the blinding snow, it seemed as the sun was setting, meaning it would get even colder than it was now. Finally in the haze ahead, Lucas could make out lights. The Snover stopped moving, its final destination now within reach. As the Trainer got closer, he could see the lights were coming from a cabin in the middle of the snowy field. Now that Lucas was in front of shelter, the Snover let out a cheery cry and ran off into the darkness of the quickly falling night. The teen knocked hard on the door when a pale woman with black hair opened the door a crack and barely peeked around it

"Listen, I really don't mean to bother you but I took a wrong turn and got stranded. It's freezing out here, could I please stay with you?" the teen was worried that this seemingly timid woman might turn him away. But no one could be that cruel, right?

"Of course," the woman said hollowly. She opened the door fully and let the teen boy inside. The cabin was small, but homely, with a roaring fire in the fireplace. Lucas let the exhaustion finally take him as he let himself fall into a chair at her table. The woman closed the door and hobbled over to sit next to him, "I'm afraid you startled me when you knocked. I don't get many visitors out here,"

"Right, I can understand that. I was on my way to Snowpoint and I got on the wrong path. I thought I could beat the storm but it was way worse that I anticipated," Lucas explained as he took off his wet snowy outer clothes and rubbed his hands in front of the fire.

"The cold can be very dangerous," the woman nodded in agreement, "Are you a Pokemon Trainer?"

"Yeah, I am. I'm on my way to get my seventh badge. I'm going to try for a Championship," With the feeling returning to his hands and feet, the teen offered out his hand to his host, "I'm Lucas, by the way,"

"Maria," the woman replied. Despite the warm fire the woman's hand seemed very cold. Lucas couldn't quite put his finger on it, but something about this woman was very odd. In addition to being pale and having a hard time moving, her eyes were very deep set with dark circles and her expressions and emotions are a bit off, "I'm afraid if you want something to eat I don't have anything ready,"

"Like you said, you don't really expect visitors. It would be silly to constantly have a pot on the stove because one day someone might come out here," Lucas reached into his bag and pulled out some of his supplies, "It's no big deal though, I can make something for myself. I can make something for you too, if you want. As long as you don't mind me using your dishes. I promise I'll clean them after I'm done,"

"I don't mind. Use whatever you need to. But don't worry about me, I'm not hungry," Maria smiled weakly. Lucas went to the business of preparing his own food and after eating felt a lot better. As he cleaned up his dishes the teen noticed a row of small toys lined up on the sink, "Ah, these are those Pokecapsule toys, aren't they? The chocolate Pokeballs that had different toys inside,"

"I used to collect them," Maria replied, a tone of sadness to her voice.

"I never collected them, collected them. But whenever I got one I hung onto the toys for whatever reason. I've still got a small box of them in my bag when I moved out of my folks' house. Most of the ones I have are doubles of yours, but I think I've got one or two you don't," Lucas put the dry dishes away and reached into his bag for the small collection of figures that he tucked away along with his Lumpy doll, "You can have them if you want. After all, you were nice enough to put up with me. I mean, I know people that would scream and slam the door on someone who looks like me on their doorstep,"

Maria looked up at Lucas with a strange expression, one like she just about to break down sobbing. With a shaky voice she said, "Yes, I would like that very much,"

The rest of the evening Lucas told Maria about his home in Cherrygrove and his Journey through Sinnoh. Maria said little in reply but was obviously listening intently, and seemed happy to have the company. When Lucas was just too tired anymore to keep his eyes open, he went to sleep on the woman's couch.

He slept for a long time, and only woken up in the morning by the feeling of intense cold. Maria had let the fire go out to cinders that were now completely cool, and ice was forming on the inside of the windows. Her bed was made, but there was no other sign of his hostess. Lucas packed up his things and waited for several hours. When he couldn't wait any longer he wrote a note to the woman thanking her for her hospitality and wishing that he could have said goodbye to her in person.

The snow had slowed down considerably, only down to gentle flakes instead of the wall of white, making traveling much easier. Strangely, Lucas found no footprints on his way from the cabin until he ran into a Hiker navigating his way between the firs on cross-country skis, "Hi there young fellow!"

"Hi! Have you seen a woman around here? Black hair, kind of pale?" Lucas called back.

"Nope, I'm afraid not, you're the first person I've seen all morning. That blizzard last night was bad even for here's standards," the Hiker explained.

"I know, I got caught in it. Luckily I got to the cabin a little while from here,"

"Ah, that cabin. Shame what happened to the previous owner," the Hiker said sadly, "Woman who lived there was always all alone. She was so painfully shy she couldn't live in town, sad part was all she ever wanted was a friend. She froze to death last winter, wasn't til the spring letup that anyone found her,"

"Wow, that is really sad. So when did Maria move in?" Lucas asked as he still worked out a rhythm for moving through the snow.

The Hiker paused, a confused look on his face, "The previous owner's name _was_ Maria,"

"What are you talking about? I stayed with her last night," Lucas gave a puzzled look to the other man.

"The cold does strange things to a man's mind," the Hiker shrugged.

Lucas said his farewells to the man and turned back to the cabin. His note was still there, and at second glance it looked like no one had been in the cabin for months. Shelves were covered with thick coats of dust and old newspapers from over a year ago were scattered on the floor. It wasn't possible. From one of the windows Lucas noticed a large bump near a grove of pine trees. The teen went back outside and trudged to the bump. With his gloved fingers he dug until he uncovered what the snow was hiding. It was a simple gravestone with the name 'Maria' engraved in block capitals. The strangest part, however, was that the two Pokecapsule figures he had given the woman he met last night were laid in front of the headstone.

"No, it just isn't possible," Lucas said to himself. The situation too bizarre and surreal, too impossible to believe. But either way he was alive and back on track to Snowpoint City. If he hadn't spent the night in the cabin he probably been forced all the way back to Celestic, or even worse, would have died. Whatever really happened that night didn't really matter. But just in case, he knelt reverently on the ground and put a hand on the tombstone, "Thank you for everything Maria, and goodbye,"


	35. Chapter 35 Battle for the Temple

Chapter 35: Battle for the Temple

With the snow falling now as gentle flakes instead of a blowing blizzard, it would only be a matter of a few hours to finally arrive in Snowpoint City. A few days ago, Lucas had come out of a difficult trip through Mt Coronet only to face an even more hazardous trek through the deep snow on the route to the next Gym. Worse yet, a terrible snowstorm had blown up, causing the teen boy to get lost in the frozen wilderness. It was being guided to a cabin by a strange Pokemon that allowed Lucas to continue his trip.

His destination was in sight now, but there would be no rush to the finish line. The snow was still deep and difficult to get through, and his legs were burning from the effort of the past two days. He would still fall on occasion and his feet were once again getting numb from his climate inappropriate boots. Just as Lucas was becoming annoyed again from the obstacle he heard a familiar noise again, "Wudju! Wudju!"

"It's you again, isn't it?" Lucas smiled despite himself. Happily hopping around him seemed to be the Snover that had guided him to safety the previous evening, "I really appreciate your help last night. You were a real lifesaver,"

"Wudju! Wudju!"

"I hope you don't mind, but I'd like you to join my team, so I'm going to try to capture you," Lucas informed the Pokemon. The Snover tipped its body to the side slightly, thought for a moment and then once again waved its arms up and down in a cheerful frenzy. Trying to keep balance in the snow, the young man pulled out a Greatball and threw it at the grass-and-ice type. The ball sucked up the Pokemon and captured the creature without struggle, a fight unnecessary for the helpful and happy Snover. Lucas trudged over to where the ball fell and nicknamed his new Pokemon, "Welcome to the family, Curly,"

Capturing the Pokemon improved Lucas' mood considerably. That and the fact that the smoke from chimneys were visible just ahead meant soon he would be in civilization again in Snowpoint City. As he came up the pass the snow got shallower and his pace could increase. No longer was it up to his thighs or even his knees, but just above his ankles. There were more sets of footprints ahead as well, indicating he was only minutes from the city. The most surprising set of footprints, however, seemed to be ones from someone who it appeared was barefoot. Wondering who would dare to go in the snow so unprotected, he received his answer as he caught up to a second person just outside the city's gates.

"Maylene?" Lucas called out curiously to the pink haired person ahead of him.

"Ah, h-hello Lucas! Good to see you again!" The pierced teen was right, the person just before him was the Gym Leader from Veilstone. Like in the Gym she was wearing a tank top and sweatpants, and was completely barefoot. Her teeth were chattering badly through her smile, and causing the fresh set of bandages on her face to rip off slightly from the action.

"Man, what are you doing out here? And like that? I'm wearing a parka and I'm still freezing my ass," Lucas replied in shock, still not quite able to take in the sight of the trembling Gym Leader.

"I-it's part of my training as a fighter. I'm building up my tolerance for extreme hot and cold. Th-this actually isn't as bad as it looks, especially not after the f-first time," Maylene explained. She may have been slowly getting used to the weather, but it was still affecting her body, "I take it you're h-here to challenge the Gym L-l-leader?"

"Yeah, you know anything about who he or she is?" Lucas asked as the two finally entered the city proper and headed towards the Pokemon Center. Snowpoint City wasn't very big, the snowy area sheltered by the dense pine forest that surrounded it, keeping the deepest and the worst of the snow mostly out. All the houses were built close together and looked like the kind of homes seen in Christmas cards and snow globes, icicles on the roofs and smoke gently wafting into the air from stone chimneys. There were a few children outside having a snowball fight and building snowmen and adults pulling packages of groceries on sleds.

"Her name is Candice. She's an ice-type specialist," Maylene added shyly, "She's actually a good friend of mine. Whenever I do my training I visit her,"

Stepping into the Pokemon Center was like entering heaven for the exhausted Trainers. The center was extremely warm and the vending machines well-stocked with hot drinks. After visiting the counter for his own Pokemon, Lucas dumped himself on one of the soft Center couches with a sigh of relief. He let Gizmo out of his ball finally and let the Eevee wander about while his Trainer stretched himself out like a cat and sipped his hot coffee, "So what's she like?"

"Oh Candice is wonderful! She's kind and beautiful, and so stylish and confident!" Maylene described excitedly as she joined the boy on the couch.

"Actually, I meant as a Trainer,"

"Oh." Maylene's face turned as pink as her hair. She then added huffily, "It would be unethical for a Gym Leader to divulge another Gym Leader's strategy,"

"Oh sorry, I didn't know that," Lucas said sheepishly before changing the subject, "So ice-types, huh? The obvious route would be fire-types, but Candice is one of the higher level Leaders, so she's probably got all sorts of crazy dual-types that know attacks that would handicap me. Well, I'll take a few days to think about it. I'm not in any rush. I just got here and I'd like to remember what being warm means first,"

"I don't blame you, but if you'd like to meet her I'm going to her Gym right now to say hello," Maylene said, already back on her feet and ready to head outdoors again.

Lucas took a moment to consider it. He had finally just gotten really warm, but meeting the Gym Leader would be a good opportunity to size her up. Since he wasn't planning on challenging her any time soon, he could always come back to the Pokemon Center whenever he liked to avoid the cold. "Sure, just give me one moment,"

Maylene waited while Lucas put his piercings back in. Though it was still cold outside, now that he was in the city, he didn't have to worry about being outdoors long enough for the metal jewelry to hurt him. Plus after years of having them, he felt naked without at least a few hoops in his ears and eyebrows.

The teen braced himself for the cold again as he followed the Veilstone Leader through the small village to the Gym. The Gym itself looked like a modern arena compared to more quaint style of Snowpoint's houses, and like all the Gyms before there was a sign describing the Leader and her specialty. _Candice, The Diamond Dust Girl_. After talking with Maylene Lucas knew exactly what to expect. Though it was a small advantage, he would take any he could get, especially as he had to start thinking about facing the Elite Four and the Sinnoh Champion Dawn. The fighting Leader seemed to have a spring in her step as she grabbed the door and went inside. Lucas followed in to discover the inside of the Gym looked like a skating rink, layers of thick, smooth ice coating the floor in strategic locations. However, none of the overhead lights were on and there was no one around.

"That's strange, there's no one here," Maylene said worryingly.

Lucas shrugged, "Not really. So far in Sinnoh this is about par for the course,"

"No, you don't understand. Candice never leaves the Gym unsupervised. If she had closed it for some reason, the door would have been locked," the Veilstone Leader shook her head. Before the two could figure out anything else, they heard a large explosion coming from outside.

Avoiding the Gym's slick ice, the two Trainers rushed back outdoors. Looking around they heard a second explosion coming from a path just north of the Gym. Maylene realized what was happening and started running, "There's something going on at the temple!"

Following the Leader's swift moments through the crunching snow, Lucas ran along the path until it opened into a clearing. Ahead was a large temple. In front of the temple was the largest group of Team Cosmic grunts Lucas had ever seen. Many of the followers in their snow fatigues had Pokemon out, while others were preparing to launch a second wave, only waiting for their commander's order. Countering Cosmic's offensive was a small group of priestesses and Junior Trainers with their own Pokeballs, lead by a stylishly dressed girl with black hair that Lucas could have sworn he'd seen before, "This temple is a sacred place where only the most worthy Trainers are permitted to enter. As Leader of this city I will not permit a group of underhanded Pokemon thieves to defile it!"

A figure Lucas recognized right away stepped to the front of the group of Cosmic grunts. With his overcoat, now having fur on the labels and cuffs, and a pair of earmuffs behind his officer's cap, Major Mathias addressed the Gym Leader, "Miss Candice, it is not our intention to destroy or defile anything in this temple, our interest is simply in one thing at the bottom levels. Even if you are a so-called 'Gym Leader' you have no way of fighting against all of us. It will be best for all parties involved if you simply surrendered,"

"Never!" Candice snapped back, now pulling out her own Pokeball.

Mathias sighed, "All right, have it your way. But keep in mind that if anything gets destroyed, it will be your fault, not ours. We gave you the opportunity to back down and have the temple unharmed. Cosmic, attack at will,"

"Not so fast! Candice isn't as outnumbered as you think!" Maylene cried, causing the Cosmic officer to to turn around.

Mathia ignored the Gym Leader entirely, instead narrowing his eyes and smiling his wide, snake-like smile at her companion, "If it isn't my favorite little toy Lucas. I shouldn't say I'm too surprised to see you here, no doubt still chasing after your pretty little Gym badges. I must say though, you must be awfully cold after coming all the way here," He added suggestively, "I could help you warm up if like,"

"I'd rather freeze to death," Lucas snarled.

The major gave the boy a sarcastic, pouting frown, "Then I assume you will be interfering in our business again. You are going to make it very difficult for me to convince my superior to give you a good position when I finally do get you to join. He's losing his patience with you, but I promise you'll always have my protection in Team Cosmic,"

"You really don't get it, do you?" Lucas spat, "I'm never joining Cosmic and I'm never joining you. Whatever you're doing today and whatever you're doing ever, I'm going to stop you! I won't ever let Team Cosmic win,"

"And neither will I!" Maylene roared.

The Team Cosmic major's eyes narrowed in amusement. With a snap of his fingers he began his orders, "Squadron's One and Two, attack the temple and push back the Snowpoint Leader and the priestesses however you can, and take their Pokemon afterward. Squadron Three, as soon as One and Two succeed, siege the temple and head for the bottom level. Forget any Pokemon you find along the way, they will be of no use to us. Squadron Four, seize the Veilstone Leader and the boy. I have different uses for them both,"

"Abomasnow! Glalie! Froslass! Mamoswine!" Candice threw her Pokeballs forward, "Use Icebeam!"

"Jynx! Use Lightscreen!" commanded the priestesses to the several human-like Pokemon they released.

"Weavile! Feint Attack!" ordered one of the Junior Trainers.

"Golem!"

"Salamence!"

"Ursaring!"

The grunts threw their own Pokemon forward and the battle began. Attacks of various elements were thrown back and forth as the priestesses' Jynx tried to keep up their psychic force-fields around Snowpoint's sacred temple. The attacks hit the humans as much as the Pokemon, but the Cosmic squadrons pushed forward, all but squadron Four.

Lucas' first instinct was to grab for one of his Pokeballs, but it became very clear this group of Cosmic grunts had no intentions of having a battle. They pulled out billy clubs and collapsing batons from their pockets and edged towards the teen boy and the Leader. For this battle it was he who would have to do the fighting, and that suited him just fine. They didn't learn from the last few times that Lucas was no pushover, and if they wanted to fight dirty, he could fight even dirtier. He adjusted his stance, grinding his heels into the crisp snow and raised his fists, ready to react to the first movement his direction. He glanced over to Maylene to check on her. Her stance was relaxed and there was a calm look on her face as three of the largest grunts rushed her. Lucas remembered what the large bruisers in the Veilstone City Gym had said about their Leader, that Maylene was stronger than any of them.

The teen boy didn't even see how the first two grunts went down. One moment two of the men were baring down batons on Maylene's head, the next they were flying into a grove of pine trees. Seeing the third man go down was something of a disturbing marvel. While Lucas was punching one of his assailants in the throat, Maylene had hit the third of the goons with two hard right jabs before slamming the man in the head with a roundhouse kick. As the man went down the Leader used his body as a springboard and launched into a second wave of grunts with a flying jump kick, sending several more onto the ground. Now in the middle of the fray, Maylene spun left and right, sending bodies flying, including a woman who crashed into one of the men trying to slam Lucas in the back of the head with a billy club. Lucas took out several grunts of his own, sending punches and steel-toed kicks into necks, stomachs and groins. But for every one of his punches, Maylene landed at least three in blinding succession. The two worked themselves through the squadron, managing to avoid or absorb the worst of the damage.

As they broke through to the main battle between the three remaining squadrons and Candice and the temple staff, Maylene only had a few light scratches on her bare arms and Lucas with a split lip. The chaos was no Pokemon battle, it was war. Candice and her entire team of Pokemon fighting at least six people for each Pokemon. The priestesses were joining their ice-types in the fight, hitting the grunts that broke through their front line with broken branches and the warding staffs normally used to exorcise evil spirits. Missing in the brawl was the major, although it wasn't as though Lucas was exactly looking forward to running into the older man again. He and Maylene raced towards the temple to help with the front when a Torterra blocked their way.

"Gizmo! Franky! Sparky! Hotrod! Stella! Gabite! Go!" Lucas cried out, throwing all his Pokeballs in the air. At first the team looked confused. Normally, at the most, only two of them would be sent out into a battle, but this was no Pokemon League sanctioned match.

"Machoke! Medicham! Machamp! Hitmonlee! Hitmonchan! Lucario! Go!" Maylene sent out her own team, including many of the Pokemon she only used for high-level battles. The Torterra was down soon before they were ambushed by a Gengar, Kingdra and Magcargo.

"I actually feel bad for these Pokemon," Lucas said sadly as Hotrod took out a Skarmory, "Most of them were probably stolen from their real owners,"

Maylene nodded as her Lucario slammed down a Rhyperior, "You're probably right. After this free-for-all we can rescue them and have them returned, but in the meantime we've got to protect Candice and the temple at all costs. Pokemon can't kill each other in battle, but they can certainly hurt us. Team Cosmic's not holding back and neither should we,"

And as if to further prove the Leader was right, a Shiftry popped from the fir above and tackled Lucas to the ground. Before it could cut him with its sharp, branch-like claws, it was knocked to the side by a Hi-Jump Kick delivered by Stella. When it was clear her Trainer was safe, the Buneary ran into Lucas' arms and buried her head into his chest. The teen wrapped his arms around the Pokemon reassuringly, overwhelmed by how much of a shift there was in Stella's attitude towards him, "Thanks a lot, girl,"

They were almost at the front line now, and not a moment too soon. Candice's Abomasnow got knocked out by a Slaking, the strain of the all-out fight too much for it. From a snowbank to the Gym Leader's left popped out a Seviper, a spray of poison coming out of its mouth.

"No!" Maylene screamed, flipping over a Camelrupt and throwing her body between the snake Pokemon's attack and the ice Trainer. The venom hit the pink haired girl full force, slamming her into the temple's door. Candice's eyes grew wide in shock as Maylene's body began to convulse.

"Maylene!" the black haired girl sobbed, running to her friend. The Seviper opened its mouth to attack again. Lucas recognized the Pokemon, it belonged to Mathias. The last time he saw the creature his Pokemon were in no shape to go against it, this time both he and his team were far stronger.

"Franky! Hydropump!" the Gyrados instantly turned away from its battle with a Venusaur and obeyed his Trainer. The blast of water tore the Seviper out of the snowbank and threw it through dozens of trees. Before Lucas could run and check on the Gym Leaders, he felt someone grab his arm and twist it behind his back. He was spun around, face to face with Mathias, the man's other arm now wrapped around his waist. With his remaining free hand he tried to dig his fingers into the tendon on the major's elbow, but between the Team Cosmic commander's thick coat and cushioning of Lucas' glove, Mathias' grip was not going to be loosened. This time kicking the commander in the knee would do nothing, the tattooed teen's legs almost entirely worn out between arriving in the icy city and the brutal fighting that continued to drag on.

"I'm afraid I'm not going to let you interfere this time, we are just too close. Now that both Leaders are out of the fight we're almost where we need to be," Mathias' grip around the boy's waist tightened, "I told you I'd keep you warm. I knew you'd need it after that fight. Your legs must feel like lead right now, I can tell by how much you've slowed down,"

"And I told you I'd rather freeze to death!" Lucas roared back, spitting directly into Mathias' face. The other man seemed unperturbed by the action, that snake smile still etched on his face.

Suddenly two Cosmic grunts approached their commander in the fray. Unlike the other grunts dressed for the fight with winter fatigues, these seemed more ready for espionage with their black clothes. They saluted Mathias, "We found the target in the bottom level of the temple. Unfortunately, it looks like it was just a legend, sir. It was a statue, not a Pokemon,"

Mathias gave a disappointed roll of his eyes, "That's what you get when you follow nothing but myth and legends. Nothing but a wild goose chase. But if the General keeps insisting we investigate this stuff, we don't have much of a choice, do we?" the major then turned his attention back to his prisoner, "Well, at least this time I won't walk away empty-handed,"

"Wait a second. Are you telling me that you had Team Cosmic people in the temple the whole time? Then why start this fight!" Lucas demanded. His concern for his own situation lessened with this startling new piece of information.

"For a distraction. In case what was in the temple was real we needed some big commotion so we could quietly get it out," Mathias said matter-of-factly. The teen could feel his blood boil as his hate for this man increased. Hate for him stealing people's Pokemon and using them as tools of war as he looked around the desperate struggle all around him. Hate for the manipulation Mathias used in trying to get what he wanted. And most of all, hate for him hurting innocent people and Pokemon for a simple distraction. He started fighting against Mathias with all his might, a new flood of adrenaline taking the pain and exhaustion away from teen's legs. To add another insult, the older, taller man started laughing, as though Lucas' actions were amusing. His laughing soon ended as he let out an angry yell of pain. Gizmo had sank his small fangs into the Team Cosmic major's leg, and squeezing down with all his might. With this new opportunity, Lucas headbutted Mathias, slamming his forehead right into the man's nose.

With the older man's hold on the smaller boy finally loosened, Lucas pulled away. Mathias tried to kick the Eevee with his other leg, only to have the normal-type hop away in the last second, running back to Lucas' side. The green-eyed man whirled around to follow the Pokemon's line of movement, only to see he was now surrounded by a very angry Gyrados, Charizard, Gabite, Rotom and Buneary. Mathias' injured Seviper finally rushed back from the place where it was side-lined by Franky and arced up in front of its master. The major smiled, calling back his loyal Pokemon and called out to his forces, "The operation is over. Fall back, we need to move on to our next mission," he turned back one more time to the teen, "I find you very intriguing, Lucas. You say you hate my ideologies as well as those of my employer, yet you defend members of the Pokemon League virtually with your life. I hope you don't change. You are too much fun to try to figure out,"

Lucas had no idea what Mathias had meant by the statement, but he didn't care. He was too tired, as was his team, to try to chase after the escaping Team Cosmic members, but in the end the fight wasn't totally pointless. In addition to many of the Pokeballs dropped during the melee Maylene's team, furious with the injury caused to their Trainer, continued to attack the fleeing grunts, causing them to drop more of their stolen Pokemon as they vanished into the firs.

The toll of the battle was quickly overtaking Lucas but before he would allow himself to sink to the ground in exhaustion, the Trainer forced himself to the temple doors where Maylene still lied convulsing from the poison in her body.


	36. Chapter 36 Lucas vs Candice

Chapter 36: Lucas vs. Candice

With the battle over between Team Cosmic, the members of the Snowpoint Gym and the priestesses of the Snowpoint Temple, all that was left to do was pick up the pieces. Though home to a League certified Gym, Snowpoint was still a tiny city with no police force, leaving no one to chase down the members of Cosmic and bring them to justice. The responsibility for sorting through and returning the stolen Pokemon used in the fight was left to the members of Snowpoint's Gym, the only official representatives of the Pokemon League in the city.

In addition to no police, Snowpoint also didn't have a hospital, instead only having a tiny medical facility with few rooms. Despite Lucas' insistence that he was fine and only needed a few days rest, the teen was forced to stay at the doctor's office three days for observation. Lucas felt fine, he only had a few bruises and mild hypothermia after the fight, the worst of the injuries were sustained by Maylene.

Team Cosmic lead an all-out assault against the Snowpoint Temple, intending to storm it and take something held in the shrine's lowest level. Both Lucas and Maylene joined in the fight to stop the group of Pokemon thieves with their violent ideology. When the Snowpoint Leader Candice was about to be hit by the poison of a Seviper, the Veilstone Leader threw herself in front of the attack to save her. In the end Lucas learned from the operation's leader, Major Mathias himself, that the battle, a violent free-for-all between dozens of Pokemon, was merely a distraction for a small group of Cosmic spies to investigate the temple unnoticed. When the Major learned whatever was supposed to be in the temple's depths was nothing but a story, they fell back and disappeared into the snowy forests around the city.

The teen was still confined to his bed, constantly watched by a grim-looking nurse that looked like she did more time than he did, leaving the boy not wanting to risk her bad side. Her constant monitoring prevented him from wandering about, despite his claims he was growing bored and antsy. Lucas once again considered sneaking away to at least visit his Pokemon, banned from the medical facility for hygiene purposes, when he heard someone walking down the hall. The tattooed boy rushed back to the bed and threw himself under the disinfectant-scented covers, only to let out a sigh of relief to see his visitor. It was the Snowpoint Leader, Candice, "Hey Lucas, how are you feeling?"

"Honestly? Fed up. I told the doctors yesterday that I was just fine but Nurse Ratchet out there says I can't leave until at least tomorrow," Lucas replied, giving an irritable side-glance to the door the black-haired girl had just entered, "What about Maylene?"

"I was on my way to see her. I just wanted to see how you were doing first before I checked in on her," Candice explained. There was an apprehensive tone to her voice. Lucas still couldn't figure out why her face looked so familiar. Like the other Gym Leaders of Sinnoh, the teen had never seen them before meeting them, yet he knew he'd seen Candice somewhere before, "Would...would you mind coming with me? I'm a little scared to see her on my own. The doctors told me she was fairly badly hurt,"

Lucas hopped out of bed, "Not a problem. I've been wanting to get out of this bed for a while now, anyway. I'm about to go 'Shining' in this place,"

The doctor's office was small and the hall was short, but Candice seemed to be going as slowly as possible, trying to make the short journey last as long as it could. Lucas kept pace with her to be polite, wondering why she was acting so strangely. With the normally two minute walk looking like it would take a lot closer to ten, Lucas decided to ask something that had been preying on his mind, "What's supposed to be in the Snowpoint Temple? What was it Team Cosmic wanted so badly?"

Candice stopped walking to turn to her male companion, "Regigas,"

"Regigas?"

"Sinnoh legend states that the continents started out as one big block of land, but with ropes on its back, the Pokemon Regigas dragged them apart until the world looked the way it liked. With its task completed, it made its home in Snowpoint to watch the land. It waited and watched so long that it turned to stone, and the temple was built around it to honor its power," the Snowpoint Leader explained.

"That explains why those Cosmic guys said they found a statue. But, they were right, weren't they? It _is_ just a statue, just a legend?"

"It's hard to say," Candice added mysteriously. The idea made Lucas shiver. First he meets Cosmic in Mt Coronet claiming to look for something sleeping in the mountain, only to learn later the peak was supposed to be home to the legendary Pokemon Arceus. Now he learns the attack on the temple was in pursuit of another legendary Pokemon. He had no idea what Team Cosmic's ultimate plan was, but it left him worried. When the two finished stalling as long as humanly possible, they finally arrived at Maylene's door.

The Leader put her hand on the door and hesitated, staring at the wood with a nervous look, not moving any further. Lucas broke the tension, "Would you like me to go first?"

With trembling lips Candice gave a wordless nod. Lucas let out a deep breath and pushed the door open. Maylene seemed asleep in her bed, her arms and chest entirely wrapped in bandages. She had an IV drip of painkillers, with thinner, lighter blankets than what the teen boy was given, barely touching her body. The Seviper did even more damage than Lucas realized. At the temple she was writhing in agony, her eyes rolling back in her head as she went into a seizure. As Candice cried in panic, the tattooed teen did the only thing he could think of by giving her an Antidote normally used for Pokemon. He was so worried about her dying, that at the time he didn't even pay attention to how the poison had mutilated her body.

Lucas gently knocked on the frame of the door. Maylene's eyes fluttered open, "Lucas?" Her eyes immediately flicked to the person behind him, and she sat up so quickly that she winced, "Candice!"

"How are you feeling?" the teen boy continued as he approached her bed, Candice still staying several steps behind him.

"Better," Maylene stated. She tried to smile and flex her arm but the movement released a fresh pain that made her eyes bulge. She then turned her attention back to the other Leader, her face once again getting pink, "I'm just glad nothing happened to you, Candice,"

"How could you do something so stupid!" Candice exploded in anger. Lucas stared at the other girl in disbelief. Maylene's face got even redder.

"When I saw that Seviper was going to attack you, all I could think was, 'I can't let Candice get hurt. She means too much to me. She's too wonderful a,'" Maylene paused suddenly as though she were about to say something she would regret and reselected her word choice, "friend."

"And what about me? Did you even think about me at all when you did that or are you just completely selfish?" Candice was shaking now, her lips trembling even worse. Both Maylene and Lucas stared at the girl in complete, unabashed confusion. The ice Leader reached into the pocket of her stylish white shirt and pulled out Maylene's locket. The Veilstone Leader gasped and reached at her neck, as though she just realized it was missing. Lucas now realized where he had seen Candice's face before. It was _her_ picture in the fighting Leader's locket, "You were worried about me being hurt, but did you ever stop to think how you getting hurt would affect me?," She held the locket forward and snapped it open, "That just maybe I feel the same way, too?"

Maylene's face was so red now that her hair seemed white. She stammered, unable to say anything, looking back to Lucas as though he could help somehow. Suddenly, violently, Candice began to sob, her body and knees shaking so badly shouldn't stand anymore. With her last ounce of strength she moved to Maylene's side and fell to the ground, wrapping her arms around the other girl's chest and buried her head in the girl's pillow, "I was so scared. I was so scared when you hit that door and you got so pale and started shaking. I thought I was going to lose you. Those days you would visit me when you did your stupid training through the stupid snow would be the best days of my life. When we'd talk about Pokemon and Contests and Accessories. How you'd complain about your dad and always have a new set of bandages somewhere on your face every time I saw you, and how adorable you looked with your little smile,"

Candice's racking sobbing continued to get worse and she lost all ability to talk as she clung to the sheets of the bed for some kind of stabilization. Maylene stared, stunned at the other girl's confession. She took a hand and stroked the Leader's black hair, nuzzling her face against the sobbing girl's, small, quiet tears now falling from her own eyes. Lucas gave the two a small smile and wordlessly left the room to give the two Leaders their privacy.

Lucas ended up spending more time in the icy city of Snowpoint than he had in any other city in Sinnoh. After finally being released from the doctor's office and the totalitarian control of the burly nurse, the tattooed teen focused on his original goal: the Snowpoint City Gym Badge. As horrific as the Cosmic battle was, it gave the young man insight into what to expect when facing Candice. His current team needed to be modified, and very vigorously trained. He could no longer afford to rely on luck to carry him through his Gym Matches. If he really wanted to be the Champion, he needed to work harder than he ever had before. After weeks of training, tweaking, developing new strategies and double-guessing, Lucas finally found himself ready for the Gym.

The Snowpoint City Gym was more impressive now that it was open. He could see that the area wasn't flat like a skating rink like he first thought, but rather staggered into several levels. Thick ice appeared on squares, and large balls of snow blocked certain paths. Junior Trainers on skates did lazy twirls and figure eights as they waited for a challenger. Lucas took a deep breath and stepped forward, Gizmo nuzzling him reassuringly in his usual place on the Trainer's shoulder. Ice-types were weak against fire, rock, fighting and steel-types, but pure ice-types were also very rare. A team of just fire-types would do little to stop Candice, nor would a small army of Steel Pokemon. Maylene told him during their match that his strength lied in his ability to think on the fly and leave his opponent guessing as his strategies were always changing. Now as a more mature Trainer, he was ready to put his strength to the test.

Carefully stepping on the first ice square, Lucas skidded at a breakneck pace, crashing into one of the large snowballs and coming face to face with the first of the Junior Trainers. Despite the teen's abrupt appearance, the Junior Trainer took the challenge in stride, "Go! Snover!"

Lucas responded in turn, testing his new strategy, "Go Steelix!"

As the Snover appeared on the field its special ability kicked in. Even though the battle was inside, a pelting hailstorm began. The steel/rock Pokemon flinched from the impact, but kept its eyes on its opponent. The Junior Trainer announced her attack, "Avalanche!"

"Steelix! Flash Cannon!" Lucas' idea had worked. Though the Steelix was damaged by the icy attack of the part grass Pokemon, the Snover was knocked out first.

The following match was similarly short. The next Junior Trainer was a boy in ski goggles whose team was made up of a Snorunt and a Swinub. Once again Lucas relied on his Steelix, keeping his other Pokemon fresh until he could face the Gym Leader. With the next match over, Lucas stepped onto the slick ice and skidded across the Gym floor. With two more Junior Trainers knocked out, only Candice remained.

Having finally figured out the Gym's puzzle with its slick floors, Lucas carefully navigated himself around until he was face to face with the Leader with black pigtails. She smiled warmly at the Trainer, and Lucas replied with a respectful nod, "Welcome, Lucas, to the Snowpoint City Gym. Before we begin I want to thank you for all your help. If you hadn't gone with me to Maylene's room I don't think I could have faced her and finally tell her how I really feel,"

"Not a problem. I'm glad everything worked out," Lucas replied genuinely.

"Even though I am very grateful to you, I want you to know that I must still fight you with all my strength,"

"No, I'm glad. I don't want you to hold anything back. If you took it easy on me, you'd only insult me,"

Now it was Candice's turn to nod respectfully. With their pleasantries over, the real work was about to begin. Candice's warm smile vanished as she stared at her opponent with icy determination, "I am Candice, Leader of the Snowpoint City Gym. Ice-types demonstrate a cruel beauty. They are fast with high special attack, and the ability to cripple an opponent by freezing them solid. Prepare to face the glittering beauty of your defeat! Go! Abomasnow!"

This was what Lucas was waiting for. This far along his Journey Lucas had been working to redefine himself in the eyes of those who knew him best as well as those who judged him on first impressions. Now was the time to show the world not just that he was a worthy Trainer, but one of the greats. If he was serious about becoming a Champion and not just about showing up John, he had to become known for a certain style. With the Gym match, just two badges away from the Elite Four, people would come to know Lucas for his strength, his compassion to his team and his ability to keep his opponents always guessing, "Go! Stella!"

Only a flash of disbelief glimmered behind Candice's eyes as she held onto her frigid battle form when the small normal-type appeared on the field, "Abomasnow! Blizzard!"

"Stella! Hi-Jump Kick!" Lucas replied without hesitation. The tiny Buneary evaded the blast of frigid air and leapt into the air. With a stance and speed similar to Maylene, the Pokemon's small foot collided with the much larger Abomasnow's head.

"Shake it off, Abomashow!" Candice ordered. Though the Pokemon was tiny, she had used an attack that was at a double advantage to the grass-and-ice type. "Use Avalanche!"

"Rock Smash!" Another fighting-type move. Lucas realized that the Buneary's Lucario father gave a powerful set of battle genes to the Pokemon and was prepared to take full advantage of them. Once again Stella jumped up, and kicked the other creature with all her might. Though also hit by the Avalanche attack, the damage to the ice Pokemon was far greater than the Buneary's.

"Woodhammer!" Candice continued, no signs of uncertainty in her face or body language.

Lucas knew he had to be careful. If the attack hit, Stella would surely be knocked out. He knew the Buneary was still speedier, so he called out another attack as soon as he could, "Hi-Jump Kick, one more time!"

As soon as the syllables were uttered, the normal-type obeyed. The Abomasnow's arm came down like a wrecking ball, but in the last second, the Buneary twirled away from the attack and kicked the Pokemon a final time in the head. The tiny Pokemon managed to fully knock out the other creature. Candice recalled the defeated Pokemon and brought her next monster to the field, "Go Glalie!"

"Stella return! Go Steelix!" Lucas shifted gears as soon as the mean-faced snowball appeared before him. _Have to keep her guessing_. Lucas thought to himself. "Steelix! Flash Cannon!"

The Snowpoint Leader studied the steel-and-rock type carefully before selecting her move. "Glalie! Watergun!"

Lucas figured as much. He knew a powerful Leader like Candice would not just rely on type-based moves for her Pokemon. The damage caused to the Steelix would be high, but as long as the Pokemon was faster, it would survive, "Use Sandstorm!"

The hail that filled the Gym from summoning the Abomasnow was replaced by a whipping wind of sand and gravel. The Glalie winced from the pelting damage, the Steelix unharmed in the sandblasting. Another Flash Cannon finished the job. Lucas had taken out two of Candice's Pokemon without losing any of his own. He couldn't get cocky or comfortably just yet, he knew the Leader still had some surprises up her fashionable sleeve. "Go Froslass!"

Another one of the Pokemon the black-haired girl had used during the great Cosmic fight. Lucas was especially glad he looked into this Pokemon before his battle. This creature was an alternate evolution of the ice-type Snorunt, which could normally evolve into a Glalie like the one he had just defeated. The difference between Glalie and Froslass was fairly significant. Froslass was part ghost-type. Which is why the teen boy was especially glad he trained a Pokemon just for the occasion, "Go Houndoom! Flamethrower!"

Lucas could only hope his rival/friend Morgan would be impressed with his training. Whether the Pokemon knew ghost moves or ice moves would do very little against the dog-like creature with its duel advantage. And any non-type moves would have a hard time hitting such a fast Pokemon. With another Flamethrower and Dark Pulse attack, the Froslass was also down for the count. Now it was down to the Leader's final Pokemon. And as it was summoned to the field the tattooed young man prepared for the switch, "Go Mamoswine!"

Mamoswine could have been particularly problematic for an unprepared Trainer. In addition to its ice attributes, it was also part ground-type. No doubt it knew rock and ground attacks that would sideline any fire, steel or fighting Pokemon summoned to the field. Thankfully for Lucas, he had no such plan to bring out any of those types of creatures. "Go Franky!"

For the first time since the beginning of the battle, Candice's frigid demeanor cracked. She immediately saw Lucas' plan, and was forced to smile over its brilliant simplicity. The Gyrados' water-type attribute would make the ice moves largely ineffective, but it was the Atrocious Pokemon's second attribute that would seal the fate of the Gym battle, its often ignored flying attribute. Being part flying-type, moves like Earthquake couldn't touch the sea-serpent.

"Hydropump!"

"Rock Throw!"

"Surf!" Despite its size and bulk, the Mamoswine was quickly defeated. The match was over, Lucas had won. And he had defeated one of the most powerful Leaders in Sinnoh without losing a single Pokemon.

Candice recalled her limp Mammoth Pokemon and returned to her normal, cheerful, post-match manner, giving her opponent a huge, warm smile, "I'm surprised you didn't use your Charizard for this match,"

"Hotrod wouldn't have had much of an advantage, even if he is a fire-type. I knew a strong Gym Leader like you couldn't be railroaded by just one type," Lucas explained.

"Maylene was right, your style is very special. You do everything in your power to make sure your Pokemon don't get hurt. I had no idea what you would do next or how to counter it," Candice replied, reaching into her pockets to present Lucas with his prizes, "For that you have truly proven you've earned this badge. I am honored to present to you the Icicle Badge. With it you'll be able to use the move Rock Climb outside of battle, and all Pokemon up to level 80 will obey you. I also present you with the TM for the move Avalanche,"

"Thank you," Lucas said simply as he accepted his reward.

"I have met hundreds of Trainers in my time as a Leader here at Snowpoint, as has Maylene and we both agree. We've met the next Champion of the Sinnoh League. I look forward to the day you defeat the current Champion and know that I was part of the path for you to get there. Good luck Lucas, and as I've said before, thank you for absolutely everything you have done for me. The temple, Maylene. Just, thank you," Candice said genuinely. For the first time since the beginning of the battle, Lucas noticed that Maylene, still moving gingerly because of her healing burns, was in the Gym watching from the bleachers that surrounded the ice.

"I do what I can when I see things that need to be done. But I'm afraid it's time for me to move on," Lucas said with his own smile, "See you around lovebirds. And don't do anything I wouldn't do!"


	37. Chapter 37 Real Estate

Chapter 37: Real Estate

Lucas returned to the Pokemon Center after his battle with Candice at the Snowpoint City Gym to be embraced by the warmth of the building's heating system. Just one left to go now. One more Gym badge, and he would earn the right to face the Elite Four and challenge the current Champion. He was the most excited he had ever been in his life. Yet for all his excitement, Lucas remained amazingly calm. The fact that he had earned seven badges gave him a kind of quiet comfort, that his Journey was not some fluke. He had not earned all his badges easily. He had made mistakes, had serious doubts and was forced to work incredibly hard in order to receive them. The physical incarnation of his quest, the first leg now so close to completion. He was not just meant to be a Pokemon Trainer, he was meant to be a Champion, even when the road was difficult.

After the Center's nurse healed him team, Lucas went to the PC to once again rearrange his Pokemon. He brought back Hotrod, and decided now was the time to reunite Gizmo with his Espeon wife Donna. As the two Pokemon played on the Pokemon Center floor, the tattooed teen dropped himself onto a soft couch and planned on getting to the final Gym. A couple of months earlier, Lucas had attempted to go to the location of his now final Gym in Sunnyshore City, only to learn that no one was entering or leaving the metropolis until a potentially dangerous electrical problem was corrected. Since then, Lucas ended up in the city in the northern most part of Sinnoh, Sunnyshore located furthest east. Having gone to Pastoria City, he could have flown there and walked to Sunnyshore, but flying over Mt. Coronet had its own hazards, and walking back was an unrealistic option. As the young man weighed his choices, he noticed that a group of Trainers on the sofa behind him were talking.

"It's still closed? Are you kidding me?" said one tall boy with brown hair.

"Yeah, I know. You know he's going to lose his Gym for sure over this one. The Pokemon League is royally pissed over the situation," said a densely built man with a thick neck.

"What are you guys talking about?" Lucas interrupted.

"Sunnyshore City," the man stated.

"Are you telling me Sunnyshore City is still closed off! It's been two months. I know, I was there when they first shut down the road," Lucas blurted in disbelief.

The tall boy nodded, "Yup. Rumor has it the electrical problem is being caused by the Gym Leader. A few years ago he started a similar fiasco when he upgraded his Gym. Caused the city's power grid to be down for over two weeks. Pokemon Center, stores, everything had to use generators while the repairs were being done. To avoid stress on their resources they also didn't let anybody in. Apparently because Volkner caused such a problem over this blackout, the Pokemon League is going to strip him of his Gym,"

"Wow. That's a big deal. If something like that is possible, why would Volkner do it? Seems stupid to me to risk the Gym," the Mohawked teen asked.

"Who knows. Volkner is known for being one of the best Trainers in the League, Champion material, but also known for being very temperamental, and a real pain in the ass when he's bored. All I can assume is that he got bored again," the man shrugged before changing gear, "Listen kid, a bunch of us that got the Icicle badge have been here a while, so we're going to get the ferry that takes people to the Battle Zone and see if there isn't a way to get to Sunnyshore, or at least talk to people from the Pokemon League. Want to come with?"

"Yeah. I was trying to figure out how to get out of here anyway," Lucas nodded. The teen remembered hearing about the Battle Zone from Morgan, saying there was the only other place to catch a ferry to the Hoenn Region. Normally only people with eight Gym badges were permitted in the area, but because of the chaos in Sunnyshore exceptions were being made.

Lucas called to Donna and Gizmo and followed the other Trainers to the small shipping yard south of Snowpoint where a huge crowd of Trainers were gathered in front of a ferry. To see so many Trainers who won the Icicle Badge was overwhelming to the teen. Though it made sense that after two months of waiting that dozens of people would accumulate in the area, it was the first time the young man had seen so many people who were also fighting for the Championship. All the Trainers Lucas had run into before were simply people who fought Pokemon for a hobby or for extra money. Suddenly seeing what were essentially all his competitors for the title made him feel somehow smaller. But just as the doubts were beginning to creep in, he reminded himself of something important. These people may be working towards challenging the Elite Four, but he was actually going to win. The Championship was going to be his, no matter what. With a more confident stride, Lucas followed the other Trainers as they loaded onto the ferry and left for the Battle Zone.

As the ferry slowly lurched towards the open sea Lucas could feel the air get warmer and the sun brighter. He let Donna and Gizmo wander around his feet as he looked at the horizon. Around him Trainers were excitedly discussing their plans on challenging Volkner and going against the Elite Four. It reminded him of the trip from Olivine to Canaclave when he was being shipped to his brother John as punishment. He remembered the excitement of the Trainers then, too. Except this time, he was one of them. It made him smile.

After about an hour the weather got so hot that Lucas was forced to change out of the winter clothes he had bought for the journey to Snowpoint City. He was not unhappy to get rid of them, finally able to feel the sun again on his tattooed arms and its heat softening his stiff muscles as he stretched out. An island appeared before him as the boat got closer and closer to its final destination. Lucas could understand why the heat was getting so intense. As the boat approached the dock the teen could see the land dotted with palm trees. The Battle Zone was clearly a tropic area, a stark contrast to the ice and snow of Snowpoint City. As the ferry approached the land, a man came down the deck with an official Pokemon League badge on his chest and a box of armbands.

He called out for the Trainers to gather around him, "Attention! Your attention please! Since we are approaching the Battle Zone we need to explain some things to all of you. Since none of you have eight badges you will need to put on these special arm bands. These bands will prevent Trainers from challenging you, or allow you to turn down a challenge without penalty. The Trainers in the Battle, Survival and Resort Zones are all much stronger than your level, which is the reason we normally don't allow you here. Also avoid the grassy areas as the Pokemon are also a lot stronger. There are Pokemon Centers in every zone as well as ships to Hoenn for those who would like to leave the region. The Pokemon League is currently working to resolve the issues in Sunnyshore City and we thank you for your patience,"

Shortly after taking and putting on the Pokemon League armband, the ferry docked and Lucas started wandering around the island. His full intention was to find another person from the Pokemon League and figure out a way to get into Sunnyshore, but in the meantime he wanted to explore. A friendly girl with thick glasses and a big sweater from the ferry explained to him what these zones were. The Battle Zone was home to the Battle Frontier, a series of challenges that were equal to, or possibly more difficult than the Elite Four because it tested not just the Trainer's ability in raising and battling their own Pokemon, but their mettle as battlers using specially trained rental Pokemon. Also well as submitting to handicaps like not being able to use the same Pokemon twice in a row. The Survival Zone was home to the strongest Pokemon in Sinnoh and was a common place for both Gym Leaders as well as the region's strongest Trainers trained. The Resort Zone was the safest of the three areas, the location for the Ribbon Club, an exclusive resort for the best Coordinators in the region to gather and compare their victories. It was also home to several vacation homes owned by some of the wealthiest Trainers in any of the regions.

Lucas stayed around the Battle Frontier first, observing exactly how the area worked. The Pokemon League official on the ferry wasn't exaggerating, the Trainers he was watching were definitely very high level. Their teams were made of powerful, well-trained, and often times rare, Pokemon that nearly blew each other away in each round. Other Trainers used rental teams made of Pokemon that were of a certain size for another challenge. Lucas had to marvel at the obstacles the Battle Frontier presented, and decided once he completed his goal of getting his four Championships and defeating his brother John, he would look into participating in the Battle Frontier. After spending several hours at the Frontier and learning some new strategies while watching the others battle, the teen decided to move on to see what else was on the island.

To get to the Survival Zone required going through the Resort Zone. The Resort Zone was very similar to the resort at Lake Verity. There was a calm, leisurely atmosphere as Trainers in expensive clothes wandered around, enjoying the sheer fact that they existed. Along with the more snobbish people, men and women in designer clothing were excitedly showing off each others Pokemon, pointing out the details in their coats, scales and feathers. Lucas recognized these people as Coordinators and seeing them made him think of Ashley again. The teen may have been sidelined by Cynthia's beauty and her allure, but his crush on her was mostly superficial, he was more than aware he was out of her league. Ashley, on the other hand, even with her rejection of him, was still the object of his affection. Thinking about her distracted the teen, and he began to sink back into his gloom.

Just as he got into a high quality bout of teen angst a loud, boisterous voice jarred him out of it, "Hi there! You look like an upstanding young man!"

Lucas looked up to come eye-to-eye with a man in an expensive Italian suit, big sunglasses, slicked back hair and an oily smile. The teen scowled at the man saying nothing but thinking, _I don't know what you're smoking, dude, but since when do I look like anyone's definition of an upstanding young man? _

The man ignored the look. He reached into his breast pocket and pulled out a set of keys, "Listen young man, I'm a real estate agent by trade, but I plan on moving. I only have one house left to sell before I can leave,"

"I may be a pretty good Trainer, but there's no way in three lifetimes I could raise the cash to pay for a house around here," Lucas finally said to the man, his tone acidic and to the point.

The real estate agent waved off the comment and smiled, totally ignoring the boy's prickly attitude, "My employer is a charitable man, so I'm _sure_ that he would be more than happy for his house to go to a worthy Trainer such as yourself,"

The man shoved the keys into Lucas' hands. The teen examined the objects skeptically, "You're joking, right? A free house? What's the catch?"

"No catch, just consider it good karma or something," the man responded nervously. Though Lucas couldn't see the stranger's eyes, the man's head moved around slightly like he were carefully examining his surroundings.

Lucas was not convinced, "Listen dude, _no one_ gives away a house for free, especially not to some random teenager. You're not even trying to lie by saying I won a contest or something. What's going on?"

"There he is!" Before the other man could answer, two more larger, angrier men also in expensive suits appeared at the top of the road. The man's sunglasses slipped slightly down his nose and revealed his eyes, which were now wide in terror.

"Listen kid, just take the house, I don't have any more time to argue. Just go to the county clerk's office and they'll set up everything so the deed will be put in your name. Once you do that I don't have to look back here ever again. Now just do it!" the real estate agent barked. Before Lucas could add anything further to the argument the man ran away, the two larger men chasing after him. The teen let out a frustrated sigh and looked back down at the keys he was handed. There was no way that this was possible. There was no way he just randomly received a free house. There had to be more to it than that. For no other reason than morbid curiosity, Lucas started looking for the county clerk's office.

The office was not particularly hard to find, though the building itself did not stand out much. It was the smallest building on the street and just a little way away from the Resort Area's Pokemon Center. The young man stepped into the gray, badly lit reception area and walked up to the receptionist who was busily painting her nails a bright pink. In addition to bad lighting, things were badly marked, giving no indication of where he was supposed to go and what he was supposed to do to claim his new 'house'. After several moments of waiting silently in front of the receptionist's desk she finally addressed him without looking up from her nails, "May I help you?"

"Um, I guess. This guy, I don't know, he gave me this set of keys and was like 'hey, you've got a house now.' He then told me I'm supposed to come here and sign the deed or something like that," Lucas explained awkwardly, not sure how he could more clearly present his information without sounding completely insane.

Much to his surprise, the receptionist nodded in understanding and while she blew on her left hand to dry, reached into a drawer with her right hand a pulled out a form which she then handed to the teen, "Just put your name, your previous address and any other information the form asks for and then I'll need you to sign the deed,"

"Wait, you're telling me this is legit? I'm actually going to get a house out of this?" Lucas blurted, gingerly taking the form the woman had handed him as though it might have been booby-trapped.

"Well, it's legal, yes. Legitimate I suppose would be in the eyes of the beholder," The receptionist finally looked up from her nails and gave a dry smile towards the teen, "You got this house from Jim Pickett, the local real estate agent. He's known for dealing and selling the nicest houses in the Resort Area. He's also known for being a gambler. Ol' Jimmy boy recently made a bet he can't pay up for and now has some not-so-very-nice men coming after him. Problem was he couldn't leave until all his properties were taken care of somehow. If too many people start asking questions it makes a person easier to find. So he arranged it with us that if anyone comes in with those keys, give them the deed. So Mazel Tov, you're the one he managed to stick it with,"

"Yeah, but what about the house's original owner. Aren't they going to be pretty pissed with me that I got their house without paying them?" Lucas asked as he finished filling out the first form.

"Any problems that this creates is with Jim and the owner, not you. You're not doing anything unethical or illegal," the receptionist switched the form for the deed and started work on her other hand, "Once you've signed that, I'll give you the address so you can see what you got yourself into,"

The address was written very sloppily on the piece of paper the receptionist handed him, her favoring keeping her nails not smeared instead of writing clearly. But after about a half hour Lucas finally located his new home. He probably would have arrived earlier, but he didn't believe the piece of paper when he first passed by the address. The set of keys he received from the real estate agent, and then confirmed in the county clerk's office was to the largest house on the street. It was a massive villa with giant palm trees and a pool out front. The teen slid the key into the first lock and then the second, each successfully turning the tumblers and allowing him into the house. Hesitantly, the young man pushed the door open, almost more nervous to come into this home in the bright sunshine than the haunted mansion in Eterna Forest. Gizmo popped in first, eager to explorer this new area. With his Eevee's lack of fear, Lucas stepped inside his new home with Donna trotting behind him.

With the flick of a switch, the Trainer illuminated the inside of the mansion. The inside seemed even more spacious than the outside, clean white walls and a set of stairs that led to the second floor. The house was unfurnished, though drop clothes on the ground and some minor scrapes on the hardwood floors suggested the previous owner must have moved out at least several months ago. Lucas' boots created a booming echo as he walked across the floor to check out all the rooms. There was a massive kitchen, a sun room, a small bathroom and a study that all connected to the living room which was the largest room on the first level. The second level lead to another study, at least four large bedrooms with giant closets and their own bathrooms, including a master bed and bath with a tub Franky could comfortably fit in. A third story lead to a storage space and the only sign of the previous occupant: a set of papers appearing to be some kind of research on Pokemon evolutionary stones. The situation still felt entirely unreal, but Lucas decided to make the most of it. Going through his duffel bag, the teen removed everything unneeded for his Journey: photographs of his family, posters from his old room, extra clothes, some CDs, old Pokemon books, the few old toys he never wanted to get rid of but always hid from his friends, and Lumpy, the dogeared Snorlax doll he held onto since he was four years old. He smiled at the pile of possessions, called to Gizmo and left the house with his bag considerably lighter.

He took one last look back at his new villa and shook his head. The Journey of a Pokemon Trainer was always filled with surprises and new discoveries. Earlier in the day he had received his Icicle badge, now he had a house in the Resort Area. Life was always filled with strange events, and for Lucas, this had been among the strangest.


	38. Chapter 38 Tag Team

Chapter 38: Tag-team

The Survival Zone seemed to be the most rural area in Sinnoh, and after hours of exploring, Lucas could understand why. The terrain was difficult to cover as thick, tropical forests transformed into volcanic cliffs and slick, rocky rivers. It would make sense why the toughest Trainers in the region would choose to battle here, the natural obstacles would strengthen Pokemon and human alike. But the teen Trainer had not come to this area to improve his skills, though it wouldn't possibly hurt so close to challenging the Elite Four. Instead, he had come looking for representatives of the Pokemon League to give him some answers.

After winning his seventh badge in Snowpoint City, Lucas had learned that the location of the eighth badge, Sunnyshore City, was still shut down from all outsiders. The city had shut down several months ago because of electrical problems, problems rumored to be caused by the city's brilliant but, temperamental, Gym Leader Volkner. The Pokemon League had allowed Trainers with only seven badges to come to the normally restricted Battle, Resort and Survival Zones to either leave for the next region, or to wait until the situation had been resolved. Lucas had no intention of leaving Sinnoh without the Championship, and patience was never his strongest virtue. After exploring the Battle and Resort Zones, and strangely enough, receiving a free house from a less-than-scrupulous real estate agent, Lucas was now trudging through the dangerous and difficult Survival Zone to find someone to tell him what was going on. And after several hours and some close calls with the local, super-powered Pokemon, Lucas found what he was looking for.

After going through a patch of brambles, the teen Trainer entered a clearing with several buildings. One of those buildings was a Pokemon Center, always a welcome sight for any Trainer, but his interests were in the building right next to it. Just to the left of the Center was the Trainer's Club, where the most powerful Trainers in Sinnoh gathered to talk and fight against each other after a hard day of training in the area. Lucas remembered hearing about this place from letters his brother had sent his family. The Training Club was only welcome to past and present Gym Leaders, Elite Four Members and Champions. The tattooed young man could have waited for word from one of the bureaucratic members of the Pokemon League to explain the situation in Sunnyshore, but he knew he had a better shot straight from the horse's mouth: the League Leaders, the best Trainers in Sinnoh.

Lucas hoped that the Club wasn't heavily guarded and that he wouldn't be stopped at the door. And thankfully, that proved not to be the case. Nobody paid attention to the still rookie Trainer as he stepped through the clubhouse door. Instead, all their focus was on a man with a bright red Afro and Birkenstock sandals who was holding his hands up defensively with a sheepish look on his face. Lucas recognized this Trainer. He had seen him during the early days of Sunnyshore's closure, he was the one who looked at the gates with such disappointment. The teen invader actually recognized many of the Trainers who were focused on the hippy-like man. Riley, the powerful Trainer that helped rescue Byron in Iron Island was in front of the pack, his arms crossed and his direct manner pushing through the other young man's defenses.

"It's your obligation to do it, Flint. Volkner's gone too far this time," Riley said curtly.

"Oh, come on, man. Volkner's my best friend. Don't make me do this," Flint whimpered, sticking his hands in his pockets and lowering his head pitifully.

"Precisely. This is exactly why it's you who has to do it. It is because you are his friend as well as a member of the Elite Four, you're the one who needs to explain to Volkner why he's no longer allowed to be the Gym Leader," Riley continued, adjusting his fedora slightly as he continued his attack on the other man, "Volkner may be brilliant, but he needs to get it through his big head that being a Gym Leader is a privilege, and he does not have the right to make the residents of his city suffer just because he can't find anybody he thinks is worthy to challenge him. And to do this for this long, he has no rights to a second chance, especially when we already gave him one two years ago,"

"So the rumors are true, Volkner really is behind the problems in Sunnyshore," Lucas said in amazement. Suddenly all the Trainers in the small room focused on him.

"Hey! We still don't know that for a fact. None of us have yet done a full-on investigation!" Flint snapped back and darted his eyes towards Riley, "And that is why we can't just take Volkner's Gym away from him like that. Guilty before proven innocent,"

"Lucas, what are you doing here?" Riley asked, ignoring Flint's argument.

"Oh, right, I really shouldn't be here, should I? I'm not a Champion yet," Lucas rubbed the back of his head sheepishly, but when he saw Riley's expression was more inquisitive than annoyed or disappointed, the teen added more of an explanation, "I got my badge from Snowpoint and some Pokemon League people sent me here since I can't go to Sunnyshore. I thought maybe you guys could tell me more about what's happening than a bunch of overly-cautious PR people,"

Riley gave a small smile, "I admire your initiative. So I'll give you an honest answer. Sunnyshore's 'electrical' problems have gone unfixed for several months now. All Pokemon League representatives sent to ask about the repair status are being turned away for 'safety reasons', the Gym Leader's orders. Obviously that means Volkner did something to the electrical grid because he was bored, just like he was two years ago and doesn't want anybody to see it. And since he won't listen to reason, threats or orders, we're trying to send in Flint here to see what's really going on. As an Elite Four member, he has authority over a Gym. But this big baby doesn't believe his 'old buddy' has really done something this stupid, and is refusing to have anything to do with it,"

"I know Volkner! That's why I know this isn't his fault! Maybe at first I thought you guys were right because of what happened two years ago, but this is been going on for too long for it to be Volk's fault. And that's why I'm not going to be part of your little witch hunt." Flint huffed back.

"Fine. Then we'll get Bertha involved. She'll give Volkner his just deserves," Riley replied dryly.

"Bertha! Like he'll get any kind of justice from a ground-type master!" As the two high-level Trainers continued to bicker, Lucas began to wonder about something they were not discussing but to him seemed fairly obvious.

"Excuse me!" Lucas interrupted. The two arguing Trainers turned their attention to the boy with the Mohawk, "I don't get you, Flint. You say you're Volkner's friend, and you believe he's innocent of whatever's going on, right?"

"Of course!" Flint said vehemently.

"Okay, all I know is the city's been closed off for two months. If Volkner's not responsible for what's going on, haven't you ever stopped to think that maybe he's in trouble and that there's something wrong?"

Flint opened his mouth and paused. He closed his mouth again and stopped to think. After a moment he finally spoke, "You know, bro, I think you are totally right. Volkner's always so beast and so good at handling himself that I didn't even think that there could be anything wrong. But there's been a lot of un-groovy stuff happening recently. He could be in a tight spot and we didn't even think about it,"

"Actually, that never came to my mind either," Riley admitted, "Both you and Lucas have a point. This situation could actually have more perimeters than we initially thought. I still want you to go, Flint, but I'm coming with you. You'll need backup,"

"No way, Rile-up. You still think Volkner is a prick. If I get backup, I want somebody I can count on to help, regardless of what's happened with Volkner," Flint glared back at the steel-type Trainer viciously.

"What about me? I've been wanting to go to Sunnyshore City anyway. I still want my eighth badge, dammit. I've been waiting long enough," Lucas grinned.

Flint gave a questioning eye to Riley, but the suited Trainer nodded, "Lucas is definitely a top-notch Trainer, and good at thinking on the fly. He was a huge help in Iron Island when Lucario turned on me. I think that would actually be a good idea,"

"Alrighty, Brohawk. You're with me," Flint nodded with a smile and turned back to Riley, "Okay Riles, let me borrow that Hawaii 5-O boat of yours and we'll be on our way,"

Even with the speed of the boat, it was still approaching late afternoon by the time Lucas and Flint arrived at the docks of Sunnyshore City. It looked like the entire pier was filled with boats, stranded until they could unload their cargo, apparently also unable to enter or leave the city during this bizarre scenario. The two Trainers were quiet as they traveled from Survival Zone to Sunnyshore, the boat's powerful engine making speaking impossible as it filled the air with noise. But when Flint pulled into the dock and switched off the engine he immediately asked Lucas a question, "Hey dude, why did you immediately come up with the idea something was wrong with Volkner?"

The sudden question caught the teen off-guard but as he stepped out of the boat behind the Elite Four member he thought of an answer, "Some guys in Snowpoint said Volkner would lose the Gym for what's going on, and I heard Riley say the same thing in club. I also keep hearing all this stuff about Volkner being, like, this amazing, super-powered Trainer that's as good as the Champion. I don't think anybody like that would risk losing a Gym over something so stupid. Just didn't make any sense to me, not if Volkner's as good as everybody says,"

Flint responded with a giant smile and nodded his head adamantly, "Exactly! I've known Volkner practically my whole life. We grew up together. Everyone meets him and they assume he's this, mightier-than-thou, emo prat. And he really isn't. He's just really smart. He gets so annoyed with dumb people, and gets bored and that upsets him. He's always trying to do things to make himself better, and to find that bigger, better challenge. Whether that's at Pokemon or anything else in his life. But he would never put people in harm's way just to improve himself, because he'd think that's dumber than anything. He's a good guy, even if he doesn't always come off that way,"

"So what do you think really happened?"

"I have no idea," and with that comment, Flint's easy-going, hippy attitude seemed to vanish.

The Elite Four member and the Trainer didn't run into anybody as they left the docks and headed up the beach to enter the city from the back end. Though the sky was increasingly growing orange, there were still several hours of daylight left. The whole scenario made the hairs on Lucas' neck stand up in anticipation, a feeling shared by Gizmo as his tiny nails dug into his Trainer's flesh. He thought humorlessly about how much he had wanted to go to the city with the final Gym. Now entering the burg made him genuinely uneasy. Going past the flood wall ended the beach and started the city, and this was where the two Trainers ran into the first person they had seen in Sunnyshore. At a gate at the mouth of the first street into town was a construction worker standing guard at attention in front of a temporary traffic gate, and locking eyes with Flint and Lucas.

The two walked up to the man and he held up a hand to stop them, "I'm sorry, due to very dangerous electrical problems, no one is permitted in or out of city. I know this is very inconvenient, but this really is for your own safety,"

"I'm here on a Pokemon League official investigation," Flint said brightly.

The worker continued to block their way and shook his head, "I'm sorry, it's too dangerous, even for Pokemon League representatives. I have direct information from the Gym Leader that even Pokemon League officials won't be safe in the city,"

"Tell Volkner that Elite Four Member Flint is here to see him," Flint sounded more serious this time. He reached into his baggy shorts and pulled out a badge indicating his status. The construction worker grimaced at recognition of the symbol and weakly walked away. After several minutes the man came back, "I'm sorry, the Gym Leader says he doesn't want to see you, and you still may not come into the city,"

Flint smiled again, but it wasn't his normal, easy-going smile. It was the smile of a man who was just barely containing his anger, "Listen, brosef, I'm Elite Four, that means I outrank Volkner and anything he has to say. Now 'Simon says' let the League people in. Got it?"

The construction worker seemed very nervous now, looking around as though he were searching for someone to tell him what to do next. He hesitated momentarily before opening the gate and running away. Flint stuffed his badge back into his pocket and stepped forward into the city, Lucas following behind him. Walking into the city, the younger Trainer could see there were hundreds of construction workers, all wearing the blue jumpsuits and yellow hardhats that safety regulations required. Though the dozens upon dozens of workers were dressed correctly, there was something undeniably off about their appearance. That feeling in Lucas' spine was getting stronger, "There's something very 'Bodysnatchers' about this. I see all these construction workers but no other people. I also don't see anyone actually working. Don't hear it either. Electrical work ain't as loud as say, putting in new asphalt, but you do hear sparking and stuff. It's almost like they're marching or something,"

"Notice anything else?" Flint asked his companion.

"Like what?"

"All the streetlamps and traffic lights are working," the Elite Four member gestured with his chin towards the lights over the streets that were slowly coming to life with the growing evening.

"Could they be on generators?" Lucas asked, though he suspected he already knew the answer.

"Nope. Only way you could have the traffic lights working like this is if the main grid was up and running," Flint stated quietly as the two continued to go deeper and deeper into the city.

"That only means one thing,"

"Yup."

"There is something wrong with this town, but it ain't the electricity," Lucas could feel his senses going into overdrive now. That same, heightened awareness he always had just before going into a fight. The two red-headed men continued to walk undisturbed through the town, but both could feel it was only a matter of time before someone—or something—dropped the boom.

Flint continued to lead, his pace still deceptively easy-going as he headed decisively to a specific point in the city. Lucas tried to duplicate the Elite Four member's meandering gait, as to not raise suspicion, but his fighter's instincts made his movements stiff and determined, a coiled spring ready to react to the inevitable ambush. The teen's heightened observation noted that the 'construction workers' were steadily becoming more and more uneasy, on occasion one of two of the workers would dart away, no doubt off to tell their superiors. The two Trainers snaked their way through the town, passed shut down markets and closed stores until Flint finally arrived at what he was looking for, the Sunnyshore City Gym. The building reminded Lucas of one of those nightclubs that would be built inside of old warehouses. The industrial simplicity of a factory setting combined with the modern comforts of an entertainment area. Like the other Gyms there was a sign in front announcing the Leader. _Volkner, The Shining, Shocking Star_. Like everything else in town, there was something indescribably off about the building. The Elite Four member gripped the door and tugged at it, and based off the expression on his face, this seemed to be something he suspected: the door was locked. Even expecting the worst, Flint pounded on the Gym door.

Another worker, dressed in the identical blue jumpsuit, white machinist's gloves and yellow hardhat opened the door cautiously, a concerned and cautious look on his face as he refused to open the door entirely, his fingers hooked tightly around the edge of the door as he examined the two red-headed men, "What do you want?"

"We're here to speak with Volkner. Tell him Flint's here to see him," Flint stated firmly but cheerfully.

The worker didn't move, "Volkner's not here, he's at the electrical plant next door,"

Flint's smile widened and he slipped his hands into his shorts pockets, "The electrical plant isn't next door. It's on the other side of town,"

The worker's eyes widened and looked like he was about to panic. He flung the door open and behind it appeared six more workers, a more controlled look spread across their faces. Without hesitation, they reached into their clothing and pulled out Pokeballs, flinging them towards the Elite Four member and the younger Trainer. Flint was beaming now, reacting with split second timing as his hand shot out of his pockets with his own Pokeball in hand. He glanced back only momentarily towards his companion, "Alright, Brohawk. It's time to show me what made Riley so impressed, because it's go-time. Go Infernape!"

"Go Hotrod!" This was the moment Lucas was waiting for, and he didn't need Flint to tell him twice.

"A Charizard. Excellent choice. Now let's show these lamebrains just how hot we are!" Flint seemed downright giddy, "Infernape! Fire Punch!"

"Hotrod! Flamethrower!" Lucas ordered. Their opponents were two Victrebels, a Girafarig, a Shiftry, an Electrode and a Quagsire. The grass-types went down quickly, no match for the fierce fire-types. Then the Electrode went down against Flint's Infernape's powerful blows. Flint switched out his fighting-and-fire type for Magmortar against the Girafarig while Lucas summoned Donna to deal with the Quagsire. While most of Lucas' focus was on the intense battle that was going on around him, the younger Trainer couldn't help but keep checking back to what the deceptively laid-back man was doing. Flint's battle style was sheer force, devastating attack after attack giving no time for his opponent to turn the tide of battle. It made the Mohawked teen very grateful the man with the Afro was on his side of this fight. As their opponents realized their total defeat, they ran off as quickly as they could, both escape for their own safety and to no doubt warn the others of the danger in town.

Just before the last pseudo-worker could get away, Flint lunged out and snatched the man by the back of his jumpsuit and dragged him back between Lucas and himself, "Alrighty, pally, let's try this again. Volkner, where is he? And this time let's try the truth. Makes things less complicated for all of us,"

Whatever loyalty the man had was greatly outweighed by his own sense of self-preservation. Without hesitation he babbled, "The lighthouse! We're holding him there. Next-to-top floor, in a utility closet that's locked!"

"See? Wasn't that far less painful than us clobbering you with our teams? Next time, just spill before we get to the fighting part. Makes life simpler," Flint said cheerfully as he let go of the man and watched him skitter away like a startled deer. The man then turned his attention back to his younger companion, "Nice work back there, by the way. I can see why Riley was recommending you so highly. It takes just about an act of God to get Riley to give a complement. It's a good thing you can dish it out because things aren't going to get any easier from here on in. They're not going to let us waltz to that lighthouse, especially now that the goon squad is going to go tell whoever's in charge that we know that they know we know. You know?"

"Yeah, I get it. Especially since that first fight, the game is over. Even if we don't get to the lighthouse, we know this isn't electrical work, and these guys aren't real workers. They're not letting us out of Sunnyshore in one piece," Lucas agreed.

"So who do you think these guys are, anyway?"

Lucas thought for a moment about the group's methods and tactics and only one name came to mind, "This has to be the work of Team Cosmic,"

The lighthouse was on the opposite corner of town from the Gym and the elevated pedestrian walkways were heavily guarded, meaning it would require going through the ground streets to get to their target. The battle at the Gym had broken the uneasy equilibrium between Flint, Lucas and the disguised workers and now it was all chaos. The two skilled Trainers tried their best to sneak through the town, avoiding the largest crowds of the Cosmic grunts no doubt ordered to find the intruders, only battling when they had no choice. With the Pokemon Center seized and controlled by Cosmic and enemies on all sides, Lucas and Flint had to preserve and protect their Pokemon the best they could. Both young men knew once they made it to the lighthouse there was no way to avoid the fights and wearing out their teams would spell disaster.

As night finally fell on Sunnyshore City the darkness benefited the already battle worn Trainers greatly. Alleys unlit by the town's streetlamps gave them refuge and the shining beacon of the lighthouse made navigating towards it even easier. Flint was practically a native of Sunnyshore, knowing all the backstreets and shortcuts, but all the backtracking to hide from Cosmic could make even an experienced resident lose direction. After what seemed like an eternity of covert movement, the two finally arrived at their destination. Lucas did his best to hide his exhaustion behind his determined grimace, but he could feel the sweat drip down the back of his neck, chilling him in the increasingly cold air. The two were crouched down in front of the lighthouse's doors, several Cosmic grunts in their worker disguises keeping an eagle eye out for Flint and Lucas. The Elite Four member held back, waiting to figure out when to attack. Carefully observing the situation, Flint pulled out a slightly dinged-up Pokevice and used its phone feature.

"Riley, it's Flint," he said as quietly as he could into the electronic, "No, I can't speak any louder. Not unless I want a platoon of Cosmic grunts to come down on us like Custer's Last Stand. Yeah, that's right. Volkner's not behind this, it's a Cosmic plot. Volkner's being held prisoner in the lighthouse and me and Brohawk are busting him loose, but we gotta get some major backup, Riles. They've got the entire city locked down and we're entirely on our own. You get the gang together and we'll give a signal when you can go in. You'll know it when you see it," With that final sentence Flint ended the call and turned to Lucas, "Okay kiddo, get ready because this is the kill screen. I know you don't know Volkner from Adam, so you don't owe any of us anything. But he's my bro, and I'll do anything to help him. You can stay here and if need be send the signal to the Pokemon League. Or you can come with me. So what's your call?"

"I ain't never backed down from Cosmic before and I'm not about to start today. Besides, I didn't come all this way to sit on my ass in the dark and have my legs fall asleep. If I can't help now I might as well quit and go home because I plan to beat Volkner in a Gym match when all this is over and then I'm taking you out when I face the Elite Four. And if I can't fight Cosmic now I don't stand a chance against you guys," Lucas said determinately.

Flint flashed him a peace sign and huge smile, "Then let's rock and roll,"


	39. Chapter 39 Burn and Boom

Chapter 39: Burn and Boom

The sights and sounds went past Lucas in a blur as he and Flint, one of the members of the Elite Four, battled their way through the lighthouse in Sunnyshore City. Lucas had finally made it to the Survival Zone to try to discover the cause of the several month long closure of the location of the eighth and final Gym. At first, all signs pointed to the irresponsible actions of the eccentric Gym Leader Volkner, but upon investigating the city with Flint, Volkner's oldest and closest friend, learned the truth: Team Cosmic was behind the closure of the city and Volkner was being held captive in the city's lighthouse. Now the two Trainers, alone against an unknown number of Cosmic hordes were fighting their way up the flights of the city's landmark on a mission to rescue the Leader while the power of the Pokemon League raced to Sunnyshore to help.

The two were on the third floor now, Lucas' hands on his knees as he struggled to catch his breath when they paused in front of the next stairwell, "How many floors is the lighthouse?"

"Six. That dude from the Gym said Volk's going to be on the fifth floor. I don't mean to sound obnoxious, but can you hurry it up a little? We might have knocked out the knuckleheads that were already here, but it's pretty safe to say they'll be bringing more red shirts while we're waiting,"

"It figures they had to disable the elevator," Lucas nodded and straightened himself up, Gizmo nudging his face in encouragement. The teen boy was always in fairly good physical condition, but he never developed the kind of stamina real fighters had and all the running and battling was taking their toll on him as much as his Pokemon. When it was clear the boy was ready to move again the two raced up the next set of stairs to the fourth floor. Flint was once again the lead, throwing open the door, another set of four Cosmic grunts ready for the ambush.

"Rapidash!" Flint called out as Cosmic's Pokemon appeared like horde in front of him.

"Franky!" Lucas added, the obedient water-type pushed back its opponents just with its appearance in the hall. Like at Snowpoint in the free-for-all battle for the temple, the Cosmic grunts ordered their creatures to attack the humans as much as their Pokemon opponents. Flint's Rapidash tore through most of its opponents with its searing hot mane and diamond-hard hooves. A Venomoth tried to blast Lucas with its Stun Spore but the teen's loyal Gyrados threw itself into the attack, blasting the bug with a Hydropump before succumbing to the paralyzing affects of the poison-type's scales. This was bad news for Lucas. Through the progressive battles between the battle at Sunnyshore Gym to all the fights on the way to this point in the lighthouse, all of Lucas' Pokemon had taken a beating. Though none of the team had been knocked out, all of his creatures was below half-strength. Even Gizmo's upbeat behavior, clinging to his normal spot on Lucas' shoulder could not disguise his panting and sluggish movements. Only Franky had remained in good shape, but now paralyzed, the only semi-healthy Pokemon Lucas' team was his Buneary Stella.

Flint's Pokemon managed to take up the slack created by Franky's downfall, but even the Elite Four's team was beginning to take serious wear and tear. The four grunts scattered to search for replacements for themselves but a new wave of Cosmic fighters sprinted in front of the set of doors to the fifth floor staircase. With no choice but to move forward, both red-headed Trainers charged the next set of grunts, hoping to use the momentum of their previous wins to keep pushing through.

This next crowd of grunts was larger than the last and none of them hesitated to summon another slew of Pokemon to block the Elite Four member and his younger companion. Flint heaved out his Pokeball once again, summoning Flareon. With no other choice, Lucas summoned out his normal-type. Stella, now fully devoted to her Trainer, tried her best to hide her weariness from the barrages of battles she participated in on their way to the fifth floor of the lighthouse. Once again the two men called attack after attack, knocking out their opponent's Pokemon with increasing difficulty. Cosmic, for their evil plans and demented ideologies, were very consistent in their belief in powerful Pokemon. Even the grunts' weakest creatures were final-form evolutions knowing devastating attacks. The tiny Buneary did its best against her opponents, her speed and fighting-type moves damaging them more than one would expect from a small normal-type. But at one point, she met her match. One of the grunts released a giant Exploud and went full-force against Stella. At first the Buneary could hold her ground, but the other normal-type's sound-based attacks kept throwing her back and slammed her against the walls and garbage cans in the hall.

Lucas could not stand to watch Stella get so hurt, especially not after everything they had been through together as Pokemon and Trainer. He called for her back to her Pokeball, but the Exploud refused to get out of the way, the red recall beam unable to make contact with his Pokemon. Forgetting about Flint and the rest of the battle, all the teen focused on now was getting his Buneary out of this fight. He tried different angles, shoving grunts out of the way to try to get to her. But no matter what he did, the Exploud blocked him. Stella continued to try to fight back and navigate around to try to get to her Trainer, but her opponent threw her back time and time again, the energy in her body just about gone. She was in the middle of the floor now, struggling with the last of her might to try to get herself to a standing position, the vicious Exploud approaching closer in a taunting manner. Just as the hideous normal-type was about to use a final Stomp attack, Lucas slid across the floor on his side, snatching Stella out of harm's way and taking Stomp in his own kidneys. The human's body exploded in pain from the force of the Pokemon's strength, his eyes watering involuntarily but the rest of his body wrapped around the tiny Buneary protectively, Gizmo following with a swerve around the Exploud to stand loyally by Lucas' face. Despite the near-blinding plain he just experienced he looked down to Stella, "I got you, you can return now,"

Stella looked up at her injured Trainer with tears in her large black eyes. This was her battle to fight, it was her job to win, and yet Lucas once again got injured for her sake. She buried her face into the boy's chest and sobbed. As her sobs and shrieks echoed in the still raging battle, her body began to glow. The tiny Pokemon became larger and larger in the teen boy's arms until her evolution was complete. Stella was a Lopunny now, and the change in her body recharged her strength. With a look of rage and movements of sheer grace and speed, the Exploud was hers now. The stun of Lucas' pain was gone now, but he remained on the floor in awe as he watched his new Pokemon battle. She was a creature of deadly beauty, the culmination of two bloodlines of champion Pokemon, and the training of a loving and selfless Trainer. Moments before, the Exploud had toyed with the tiny Buneary like a cat plays with a dying mouse, but now Stella in her new form was making short work of her opponent. With a devastating kick, the Exploud was sent flying into the crowd of still-battling Cosmic Grunts, instantly ending the battle as they scattered in fear and pain. The fight finished, the Lopunny returned to her Trainer's side. Lucas wrapped his arms around her face, "Thank you,"

"You okay, Brohawk?" Flint asked as he helped Lucas off of the floor.

"I'll be pissing blood for a week, probably, but otherwise I'll live," Lucas winced as he was pulled to his feet by the man with the Afro, and gingerly touched the spot where the Pokemon had kicked him. With one last pat for both Stella and Gizmo, he recalled both of his creatures and once again followed Flint towards the staircase.

The terrified grunt from the Gym had informed Flint that the captured Volkner was on the second-to-top floor of the lighthouse, locked in a storage closet. In the six-floor building, it meant the Sunnyshore Gym Leader was somewhere on the floor Flint and Lucas just entered. After the Herculean effort of non-stop battles between the first and fourth floor, both Trainers expected the fifth floor to be crawling with grunts, but much to both of their surprise, the fifth floor seemed abandoned.

"This doesn't seem suspicious to you?" Lucas asked in a low voice, the hairs on his neck once again warning him of danger.

"I don't care if this is a trap, I'll worry about that later. First we free Volk," Flint said as he began throwing open all the doors on the level, looking for his friend. He knew he was at the right place when he couldn't twist the knob on a door marked _Closet. Authorized Use Only. _Flint summoned out his Rapidash and ordered it to do a Double Kick against the locked door. The metal door flew off the hinges with a 'pop' and fell down like a domino. Flint's face lit up, "Volkner! Bro!"

"Well, well, Flint. It's about time you showed up. I was about to get bored again," Lucas jogged over to where Flint was and when he looked into the closet found himself falling face first onto the ground.

The fact of the matter was that Lucas liked girls. A lot. But the right man with the right looks could make the teen boy act as much of an idiot as around a pretty woman. And for Lucas, Volkner had the right looks. Like Flint, The blond Leader was in his early twenties. He sitting back in a metal folding chair with his feet against the wall of the small room in a strikingly casual manner. He had serious eyes and a small confident smile that allowed him to exude a kind of indefinable coolness without the grating obnoxiousness that often accompanied self-assured people. And upon seeing Volkner, Lucas' feet had miraculously discovered the one spot of uneven floor and sent him diving to the ground.

Volkner's eyes widened slightly at the teen boy's attraction-based lack of grace, "Who's he?"

Flint yanked Lucas back to his feet with his usual easy-going attitude and explained cheerfully, "This is Lucas. He's the kid who's been helping me rescue you,"

"H-hi," Lucas stuttered awkwardly. Volkner raised an eyebrow towards Flint in disbelief. The teen boy was already mentally slapping himself in the back of his head for his ridiculous personality flaw. Not only did he develop a surprisingly strong crush at the most inopportune time, crushes on men added an additional layer of complexity.

"Well, either way I appreciate you guys finally showing up. What took you so long, anyway?" Volkner lifted himself off of the metal chair and stretched himself out. He shuffled towards Flint and the two old friends bumped fists.

"Didn't know you needed the help, bro. The League thought you were just being all moody again and fried the power," Flint explained.

"For two months? Really?"

"Yeah. In fact they wanted to strip you of your Leader title. That's what they originally were trying to send me here to do. Fact is, if it wasn't for Brohawk over here, you'd still be locked in this closet. He was the one who thought you might need help,"

A flash of anger passed behind Volkner's eyes but he immediately calmed and turned to Lucas with a more genuine smile, Flint's piece of information seeming to improve the Leader's confidence in his other rescuer, "Thanks, kid,"

Lucas could only bring himself to respond with a nod, fighting his body to not allow his face to become bright red.

"Point is we're here now and the cavalry's coming soon, so let's am-scray out of here," Flint said with a gesture back towards the stairwell.

Volkner shook his head adamantly, "We gotta get my Pokemon back first. Then we need to go back to the Gym. They're keeping my Junior Trainers hostage there,"

"Um, Cosmic didn't take your Pokemon, did they?" Lucas managed to ask, his voice cracking slightly, "Because if they did I don't know how'd we get them back. A Leader's Pokemon would be pretty valuable to those creeps,"

Volkner sneered as he started heading towards the staircase for the top floor of the lighthouse, "Nope, never got a chance to. Like the rest of you, I thought these people were workers, that is until they invited me to the lighthouse. Once I ran into _him_, I realized something was up. They chased me up to the lamp room but I stashed my team before they got me. Since then I've just biding my time until I could make my move,"

Lucas wondered about who the Leader was talking about when he mentioned 'him', but he felt he couldn't muster the decorum to speak again to Volkner without tripping over his tongue. With a determined gait, the Sunnyshore Leader climbed up to the top floor of the lighthouse. The lamp room was the area where the giant light that warned passing ships of the rocky reef around the city was located. In olden days, the light was lit by oil, like a giant candle and was tended constantly by the lighthouse keeper. Today the light flashed with the power of electricity, and was largely maintained automatically. With the sky pitch black now, the lamp was on and flashing back and forth across the water. Volkner jimmied with the locked door that allowed maintenance workers to go inside the light itself and marched to a panel below the slowly moving lamp. Popping open the panel, he pulled out a belt with several Pokeballs, smiling with relief that his creatures were still there. He turned towards Flint and Lucas, "Okay, _now_ we can leave."

"Already, Mr. Volkner? And you were just beginning to see things from my side," the voice was all-too-familiar to Lucas. When the three Trainers turned back towards the door the Cosmic commander Major Mathias was leaning casually against the door frame. His eyes immediately locked with Lucas', and that annoying snake-like smile spread widely across his face, "This is truly my lucky day. Now I've got one of the member of the 'elite' Four trapped and I get to run into you again, Lucas. You always know how happy you make me just to see you,"

Volkner turned to Lucas in rage, "This guy's a friend of yours?!"

"He's as much my friend as a Golem is a water-type," Lucas responded back, his sense of outrage outweighing his shyness around the handsome blond Leader.

"This is the jackass that's been keeping me in the closet this whole time," Volkner snarled, "He's been wanting me to sign up with Cosmic,"

"But you see now what I was saying weren't lies. You are notorious for being one of the strongest Trainers in all of Sinnoh, on par with the so-called Champion, yet your potential is constantly suppressed by the Pokemon League and their ridiculous policies. Any time you try to become more than you already are, you are held back. You may think Flint is your friend, and I no doubt think he believes he is, but at the end of the day he's just a hand puppet for the League, soothing you back to your Gym and forcing you to face weakling Trainers and their pitiful teams. And look, the moment it seems as that you've once again tried to live up to your potential, satisfying your mind with making puzzles for your Gym since you can't satisfy your craving for that power you yearn for, the League is ready to throw you away. What Flint told you was true, they were going to take your Gym away. Even after lowering your head time and time again for the Pokemon League to stay within their rules, they are so easily going to turn their backs on you. Come to Cosmic, Volkner. Your strength will never be held back, your potential never castrated. With your talents allied with the General you would probably even come to outrank me. Imagine it, Colonel Volkner," Mathias tempted, his voice with the soothing quality of a demon.

"You can't honestly believe something like that would appeal to him? Right Volk?" Flint snapped towards the Cosmic officer and turned to his friend. Much to Flint's shock, Volkner said nothing. The blond Trainer had an unreadable expression on his face, obviously deep in thought. Almost like he was considering what Mathias had to say. Weakly the Afroed Trainer called out to his friend again, "Volk?"

Mathias wide mouth spread even further with his satisfied smile. "I guess you don't know him as well as you thought. Of course if you are truly so loyal to your friend you can always join, too. The General would be extremely pleased if you I could get three of the most powerful Trainers in this region to be recruited to Cosmic,"

"Three? Is a mouse in your pocket a Pokemon Trainer, too? Because I know you don't mean me, Major Pedo," Lucas snarled.

"You are too much of a tease, Lucas. But I suppose that's what draws you to me. The game's more fun than the prize. But we both know I'm getting you on Cosmic eventually. That's why I don't resort to the same tactics I use for recruiting other Trainers to our ranks. I have the patience to wait the resolve to keep chasing," Mathias smirked with an unconscious lick of his lips.

"I'd tell you to bite me, Mathias, but I'm afraid you'd take me literally," Lucas replied.

"Most likely," Mathias added dryly before turning his attention back to Volkner, "Please don't think me rude and that I was ignoring you, Mr. Volkner. So what do you say about my offer?"

"I have a pretty specific place on where you can put that offer," Volkner finally spoke. Flint's worried look instantly vanished, "You're right about one thing, Major, I don't like having to hold myself back. I do get really bored when I have to face a bunch of green Trainers who think their ready for the Pokemon League and I can beat them in a couple of rounds. But what you don't get is on how you get to fulfill your potential. You don't get strong by crushing the weak, you get strong by facing the strong. I want to keep facing stronger and stronger Trainers just to see how far I can go, to see what me and my Pokemon can do, what's the total voltage we can take. But I don't stay at the Gym because Flint pleads with me, or because of anything the League says, but because every so often I get my strong Trainer, and I lose. And those rare Trainers are what keep me a Leader. That test that shows me I haven't hit my potential yet and I get inspired again,"

"Yeah Volk! That's the bro I know and love!" Flint shouted as he pumped his fist in the air.

"If that's your answer, I'm afraid I can't let you leave," Mathias sighed irritably and reached into his long overcoat to pull out a Pokeball.

Lucas immediately reached for his own belt when he felt a hand on his shoulder. Flint was smiling at the boy, "No worries, Brohawk. We'll handle it from here on out," He stepped next to his oldest friend and offered his fist, "So what do you say? I bring the burn, you bring the boom?"

"Damn straight," Volk replied and collided his fist with Flint's.

"Seviper! Arbok! Go!" Mathias commanded.

"Rapidash!" Flint summoned.

"Raichu!" Volkner added.

Once again Lucas was witness to a fierce battle between powerful Trainers. For his intense dislike of Mathias, the teen knew the man was no one to underestimate as second in command in Cosmic. But his opponents were a member of the Elite Four and the strongest Gym Leader in Sinnoh. The first round was a stalemate. Volkner's Raichu managed to take out the Seviper, but Flint's weakened Pokemon succumbed to the Arbok's attacks. Flint next called out his Flareon, to which Volkner recalled his evolved Pikachu and brought out his Jolteon instead. Mathias' next Pokemon was another serpent-like creature, the water-type Huntail. In this round Flint and Volkner were able to take out both of the Cosmic commander's Pokemon. Mathias then summoned a Steelix and Gengar and with their combined attacks were able to take out both of the Eevee evolutions. Flint and Volkner showed no hesitation, and summoned out the next of their Pokemon.

"Go Magmortar!"

"Go Electivire!"

The two massive Pokemon shook the lighthouse slightly as the appeared before their Trainers. Even as pure types with no second types to add more advantages, the two overpowered Pokemon made short work out of the last of Mathias' team. Though a flash of anger appeared behind the Major's aqua green eyes, he started laughing, "Well that was pointless. For you of course, not for me. While we were having fun with our Pokemon about forty of my grunts are behind me in the staircase. You're still just as trapped as you were fifteen minutes ago,"

The three young men edged away from the door as they saw Mathias was right. From the staircase they could hear the rhythmic sound of marching feet coming up the stairs. Though not yet panicking, all three Trainers looked around to see any hopes of escape. They were on the sixth floor, there were was no more 'up' to escape to. As Lucas glanced out the windows to see how far down was the ground his own heart sank slightly. Up until an idea flashed in his brain.

"Th-these windows open?" Lucas stammered to Volkner, his face flushing slightly when the Leader's elbow accidentally touched his arm as they continued to back away towards the clear glass walls.

"That they do," Volkner quickly spun back and hit a small latch towards the floor, causing one of the huge glass panels of the lamp room to pop open, sending in a whoosh of cold night air.

Lucas pulled off a Pokeball from his belt and threw it out the window, "Go Hotrod," The Charizard appeared in a flash in the black sky, flapping his wings while he waited for Lucas. The Trainer hopped onto his Pokemon's back and gestured to his two companions to join him.

Flint hooked his arm around Volkner's elbow and dragged his friend forward. With outright giddiness he said, "Now this is what I call riding in style!"

As the grunts rushed forward, Lucas nudged his Pokemon with his knees and Hotrod swooped down in a dazzling dive. With a barrel-roll under the pedestrian bridge now lit up like a landing strip, the three Trainers escaped their captors. As the Charizard's wings beat up and down Volkner tapped Lucas on the shoulder and shouted, "We need to head to the Gym. We gotta free my Junior Trainers,"

"I think Brohawk is going to head there anyway. We still need to give the PL the signal," Flint replied for Lucas. With a nod in agreement, the teen boy guided his Pokemon towards Sunnyshore Gym.

When they landed Cosmic had not arrived yet, the Charizard's speed giving the three a much needed advantage in an otherwise badly skewed fight. But their time would not last long. It was Volkner's turn to take the lead, guiding the red-headed men through his Gym. Lucas had no time to admire or study his surroundings, the thought of an upcoming Gym match entirely blotted out as the battle to rescue Sunnyshore City was becoming more intense. The Pokemon League had to come in now. All three Trainers' teams were badly wounded, and Cosmic had close to a thousand of their members keeping the city under their thumbs. The police, the Pokemon Center and the city's citizens all kept as much under lock down as Volkner was in the lighthouse, and his Trainers in the Gym. The Leader found his captive followers locked in the generator room and when he turned the key and opened the door he was rushed by a little girl in a Pikachu costume.

"Waaah! Volkner I'm so glad you're here, I was so scared," the little girl sobbed, "We didn't know what happened to you and those workers locked us all down here,"

Volkner put a reassuring hand on the girl's shoulder as well as locking eyes with the seven other Junior Trainers locked in the room. Volkner's Trainers were electricians, rock musicians and another little boy also dressed in a Pokemon costume, "You're all going to be safe now. But we need to move fast. Those 'workers' are actually Team Cosmic. That group we've been hearing about for months. We thought were ready for them, but these guys' tactics aren't some crazy person with a harebrained scheme. They're still here and there's no way we can take them on head-on. They'll be back, so we need to go and signal the Pokemon League. So everyone, get ready!"

"Right!" The Trainers said in unison. Five of the Trainers scattered to other parts of the Gym, but three followed Volkner as he guided them, Flint and Lucas through the concrete corridors that existed for maintenance just behind the Gym walls. But as they moved through the tight halls a hum rang through the building everything became pitch-black.

"So they cut off our power. They think that will stop us," Volkner laughed humorlessly, "What shape is the back-up generator in?"

"I guess you didn't pay attention in our prison," One of the musicians who had more lip piercings than Lucas said snidely, "Back-up generator is gone. Workers, or I should say, Cosmic, took that sucker out as soon as they shoved us in,"

Volkner was unfazed, "That doesn't matter. We're still an electric-type Gym, after all,"

So through the darkness, the blond Leader still moved in the tight corridors with his Trainers following awkwardly behind him. He finally led the group into a room that had slightly more light, a single, small window high on the wall let in the small amount of light from the moon and the ambient light of the other buildings and streetlamps in Sunnyshore. In the dim light, Lucas could see a large machine that looked like something out of Frankenstein. The handsome blond Trainer raced towards the mysterious device and started examining it for defects or sabotage.

"Good, nobody's been here. I'm glad I finished it when I had the chance," Volkner said softly under his breath. He then turned to the group, "Okay guys, this is what we're going to use to get a signal to the League. This unit to my left is a lightning rod attached to a charging lode. I need you to use your Pokemon to zap this thing as much as you can. You don't need to worry about overdoing it because this thing needs loads of energy. Get ready because if Cosmic killed the lights they know we're here and they're going to eventually find us. So we gotta work fast,"

"Go Pikachu!"

"Go Magneton!"

"Go Luxray!"

"Go Electrode!"

As Volkner and the Junior Trainers began charging the machine, Lucas added his own Pokemon to the mix, "All right, Sparky! Have fun!"

The curious and happy-go-lucky Rotom was delighted to try something different from training and battling and began zapping the rod with the last of its strength. As the five electric Pokemon used their power with all their might, the large mysterious machine began humming and beeping to life. As the Trainers and their Pokemon worked, Volkner continued to adjust nobs and switches on the device, carefully checking dials and gauges as he waited for the right level to be achieved.

Suddenly the rest of the lights came back on in the Gym and standing in the doorway behind the Trainers was once again Major Mathias. He was still smiling triumphantly and carrying himself with his usual suave and dignity, but there was no hiding the irritation glittering in his green eyes, "Why must all of you waste my time like this? This stupid stubbornness impresses no one and you're just exhausting yourself and your Pokemon. This operation was planned for months and I have over a thousand of my people in the city. Do you honestly believe that a handful of weak Trainers and a few strong ones could stop a mission of this size? Cosmic's strengths are not just physical, but mental as well. We have planned for every contingency, plotted for every error and contemplated for any scenario. I expect this kind of adorable naivete from Lucas, but Volkner, you should know better,"

Volkner ignored Mathias and turned to Flint, "Flint, I have a confession to make. I have been doing some upgrades to my Gym recently. What can I say, I get bored way too easily," With a satisfied smirk, the Leader lurched up the largest switch on the machine. All the charge from the hardworking Pokemon was pulled up into an arc and disappeared through thick copper cables in the ceiling.

"What have you done?" Mathias demanded, but the blond Trainer only responded with a sneer. Lucas felt his heart beating faster after seeing such a cool act of defiance against someone he disliked so much. Mathias' eyes narrowed dangerously and he ran back into the corridors, the rest of the Trainers, Gym Leader and Elite Four Member following him to the outside to see what Volkner had done. From the outside the large metal building was now acting like a Tesla coil. Loud, large arcs of electricity that could be seen from miles away flashed up in the sky towards metal towers that surrounded the Gym.

"Well Volk, I'd definitely call this a signal," Flint whooped.

Within a matter of seconds the grunts of Cosmic came running towards their leader like a horde of rats trying to abandon a rapidly sinking ship. Following behind were dozens of faces that Lucas recognized. Riding on his massive Rhyperior's shoulder with his Lucario on the opposite side was Riley, following close behind on a snaking Steelix was Byron with Roark and Grant standing behind him. From the route from Lake Verity stood Gardenia followed by Professor Rowan's assistant Lucas. Floating down from of her Mismagius to make an entrance was Fantina. Clasping hands and with her shining burns still healing, Maylene and Candice ran together, their teams once again battering the Cosmic grunts. And from the docks, leading a group of the highest ranking Trainers in Sinnoh stood Cynthia, Crasher Wake with Barry trotting behind, an old woman who stood with sheer ferocity for her age and a girl who couldn't be more than twelve with blue hair and a gentle smile. The Cosmic battalions were truly panicked now, looking to their leader for help.

Mathias' flicked eyes around, trying to remember the backup plan for this situation when a sparking of static came from his overcoat. He pulled out a radio and Lucas could hear the deep, emotionless voice crackling out of the device, "_Mathias, this operation is a failure. We're pulling out now_,"

"Yes, General," Mathias responded curtly, "You have my sincerest apologies for my failures. There were a couple of scenarios I did not foresee. The next operation will not have these potentials for error,"

"_There will be no next operation, Major, we are too visible in Sinnoh. We will be pulling out of the region. At least for now_," The enigmatic General ordered.

This command seemed to take Mathias by surprise, "But General what about—no, never mind," the Major seemed to want to argue, but thought better of it. With a gesture to his troops he put away the radio and pulled out a second device that looked like a remote control and clicked it. Within a few seconds several giant helicopters were filling the chaotic air with noise and dozens of cables were lowered down. The grunts not caught in a fight with a Pokemon League member rushed for the escape route, creeping up to vacate to safety. As the last of the uncaptured grunts ran away to the choppers, Mathias turned one last time to Lucas, "This is goodbye for now, my dear friend. But we will meet again. For now, you serve the Pokemon League and fail to see the hypocrisy of your hatred for Cosmic, and you look at me with those hate-filled eyes and determined jaw. But you will come to see the truth, and I will wait with anticipation for the day you serve under me in Cosmic,"

"Satan's gonna be nursing frostbite first," Lucas responded. With a last of his skin-crawling snake smiles, Mathias grasped onto a cable and was pulled into the sky by the chopper.


	40. Chapter 40 Lucas vs Volkner

Chapter 40: Lucas vs. Volkner

Team Cosmic was gone. At least for now.

Lucas heard directly from Cosmic's leader himself, the enigmatic figure only known as 'The General', that the group was leaving Sinnoh. The last battle with Cosmic had been amongst the most fierce the young Trainer had ever faced. Everything had started so quietly before exploding into almost all-out war. After two months of being cutting off from the outside world, Lucas and Elite Four member Flint had gone into Sunnyshore City to investigate accusations that electrical problems were being caused by the city's Leader and Flint's best friend Volkner. The truth was the entire operation was a plot by Team Cosmic to forcibly recruit Volkner, widely acknowledged as a Trainer on par with the current Champion, to the evil organization's top ranks. When he refused time and time again, he was held captive in Sunnyshore's famous lighthouse until finally freed by Flint and Lucas. And that was when things got difficult.

Volkner led his rescuers back to the Sunnyshore Gym to both free his Junior Trainers as well as activate the new Tesla coil he had installed in the building as a signal to the waiting members of the Pokemon League positioned outside the city. Once the signal was given, the strongest Trainers in the region: current and former Elite Four members, Gym Leaders and even the Champion herself came in and battled the Cosmic hordes. League officials estimated there were between a thousand and fifteen-hundred grunts in the city and when the battle was over nearly seven-hundred of them were arrested and thousands of stolen Pokemon were returned to their grateful owners. It was a huge blow to the organization, but Lucas knew the battle with Team Cosmic was far from over. The General had said as much himself. But for now Sinnoh was safe from the demented Pokemon thieves and their twisted goal of destroying weakness, and life had no choice but to continue to move forward.

The city was beginning to return to normal. The harbors and roads were reopened, the citizens were once again free to roam their city and Trainers with seven badges and an ambition to become the Champion came flooding into Sunnyshore City to challenge Volkner. With crowds of stir-crazy Sunnyshore residents in the streets, traffic from backlogged shipments of goods coming in and out of the city and the constant line at the Gym, Lucas decided he was in no hurry to do anything, especially face Volkner. The blond Gym Leader proved in his fight against Cosmic, and specifically Cosmic commander Major Mathias, that he was every bit as powerful as his reputation implied. Something the tattooed young challenger realized would create a problem for his team. There was a secondary, more personal problem that affected specifically the Trainer. Lucas had developed a strong crush on the slightly older man, one that made it particularly difficult to speak to or even look in the eye of Volkner. It had been a long time since he developed an attraction so strongly, so fast. Though he had become attracted to the powerful Trainer Cynthia, it was more an admiration for her beauty and alluring maturity. With Volkner, it felt more like genuine feelings towards the man. Feelings he hadn't had so strongly since the pretty Coordinator Ashley in Hearthome City, the girl that inadvertently broke his heart and made him even more gun shy about approaching a person he liked. And during that time his awkwardness and idiocy ended up with him on the bad side of the city's Leader Fantina. This time it was the actual Gym Leader he had become smitten with. He was going to have to train himself just as much as his Pokemon.

Having seen at least part of Volkner's team in action, and knowing the strengths and weaknesses of electric-types, Lucas once again had to rearrange his team to give himself the most advantages he could possibly have. Franky, Sparky and Hotrod, cornerstones of his team, would have to be benched for this fight with their type disadvantages. Instead, he switched them with the Rhyhorn and Gabite he used for his fight against the Leader from Pastoria City, Barry, and the Steelix he caught on Iron Island. Lucas had a habit of only nicknaming Pokemon when he felt he had a good grasp of their personalities. Some Pokemon he would name right away, others he'd wait until he knew them better. Having fought time and time again with these creatures, he renamed his Gabite Jaws and his Rhyhorn Panzer. It would take some time to get these two to the same level as the rest of his team, but for Lucas, training was never tedious.

Over time the crowds at the Gym and rest of the city died down as things went back to usual and the teen boy's team was just at the point that they needed to be. Though Lucas' Pokemon had become far stronger, he himself still felt unsure. Even the anticipation for the match made his heart race, but no matter what he tried he couldn't seem to overcome that mental shutoff switch he seemed to have around people he liked. But his Pokemon had worked hard and he had waited long enough. Regardless of anything, it was time to face Volkner. He had waited months to fight in this Gym and though he had never faced someone he was attracted to in a Pokemon Battle, he was going to have to jump that hurdle just like all the others he had encountered on his Journey so far.

Moving once again through Sunnyshore City, Lucas could appreciate the size and scope of the bustling city. The pedestrian bridges that rose above most buildings provided shortcuts to the most important places in town. A valuable asset the teen could now see once he saw the real measure of Sunnyshore's population. Using one of these bridges himself, the tattooed young man walked from the Pokemon Center to the Gym, bracing himself and steeling his courage as he gripped the building's door. With Gizmo chirping his encouragement from his usual place on Lucas' shoulder, the teen marched forward to inside the Gym. Like the city, the Gym was not at its most amazing unless there were people inside. The crowds from successful and less successful badge campaigns were gone, but the Gym was still teaming with life from the numerous Junior Trainers and the Gym's full system was operational. He could understand how the Leader's previous upgrades had caused a strain on Sunnyshore's power grid, the Gym's puzzle worked like a self-guided train track. He would have to step inside a small caged platform and use the switches on the control panel to navigate the platform on the tracks until he could approach a Junior Trainer. Manipulating the platform was trickier than it seemed, as there were several junctions on the track, and not moving the switch at the right time would send Lucas on the wrong path. It required proper timing of the switches and trying to read the track beforehand in order to get to the desired dock. After fumbling for several minutes, the teen finally reached the first Junior Trainer.

It was the girl in the Pikachu costume, and upon seeing Lucas she waved her arms excitedly, "Hey, it's you! The guy that saved Volkner the other night. Thanks a lot for all your help. Volkner is really looking forward to fighting you, but I'm afraid you're going to have to face me first,"

Lucas swallowed hard at the girl's comment about 'Volkner looking forward to fighting him.' He knew perfectly well she meant the Leader wanted to face a strong Trainer in combat, but the small, irrational part of his brain thought Volkner might have wanted to see the boy for a different reason. He mentally chastised himself and brought his focus back to the battle at hand. He needed all thinking processes active for his strategies to work. He had finally developed his own style, and this close to facing the Elite Four, it was time to master it. The little girl sent out a Pikachu, Lucas responded with his Steelix. After another Pikachu and a Pichu, the little girl in the Pikachu costume was defeated. Going through the door behind her, he entered a new room with another new set of tracks.

On this level were two more Junior Trainers, an electrician and the musician with the lip piercings that had accompanied Lucas and Volkner to the control panel of the Tesla coil on the night of the Cosmic battle. These two had stronger teams than the little girl, with Voltorb, Magnemite and Electibuzz making up the majority of their arsenal, and with the musician throwing the teen for a loop with a Kricketune that badly confused his Gabite. After going back to the Pokemon Center for a breather, Lucas returned to the Gym's third level to face three more of the Junior Trainers, the little boy dressed as an Elekid, and two more electricians. The fourth level contained the final two Junior Trainers and just beyond the final door to the final level was Volkner.

Lucas was feeling more confident now, even with the bumps and surprises, the teen Trainer managed to get through the Junior Trainers relatively quickly and without any of his Pokemon actually fainting. He was no longer that rookie Trainer he was in Eterna City, making basic mistakes and not even able to catch a Bidoof. He was experienced and had become smart, and was finally to that point where even at a type disadvantage he could figure out a way to victory. Knowing the strengths of his team and himself he took a deep breath and entered the Gym's final chamber, sure that no matter what, he could face the Gym Leader. At least that's what he thought until he actually saw Volkner again.

Compared to how elaborate the rest of the Gym was, the final room was incredibly basic and low-key. It was just a basic stadium with cinder block walls painted white and a row of spot lighting at the ceiling. It almost reminded Lucas of the cell he had in Juvey. At the back of the room was the podium where the Gym Leader would stand, however, Volkner was lying down, his arms sprawled out and his feet to the side, a grim, irate expression on his face and his eyes glazed over in boredom. Flint was sitting next to the Leader, trying to cheer him up with cheesy jokes and bad impressions until Volkner noticed someone had entered the chamber. The blond's eyes flicked over first, and upon recognizing the Trainer, shot up to his feet with a big smile, "Ah! Lucas! I was wondering when you were going to show up. Do you know how many badges I've given out in the past week? Four. Can you believe it? All those Trainers and I've only given out four badges. I'm just about bored to tears. I'm glad you're here. Ever since the lighthouse thing I've been wanting to test your strength. It's time to impress me,"

As soon as the Leader looked at the boy with his smile, Lucas fell to pieces. He felt his face, ears and shoulders turn completely red, and could only respond to Volkner with a stupid, wordless nod. He felt his hand shaking as he tried to reach for his belt for his Pokemon. Gizmo tried to headbutt his Trainer back into reality, but it appeared the teen was too far gone.

Volkner was completely oblivious of Lucas' state, too entirely focused on the anticipation of a genuinely exciting Gym Match and began his speech without noticing that the teen was barely listening, "I am Volkner, leader of the Sunnyshore City Gym. I specialize in electric-types, a type all about speed and special attack. Even when a Pokemon may be faster, with a quick paralysis, the advantage immediately returns to me. I am the last wall before facing the final Sinnoh League badge and the right to face the Elite Four. So Lucas, prove to me you have what it takes to become the next Champion! Go! Luxray!"

The familiar beginning of a battle partially brought Lucas back to reality. He knew he had to react to the Pokemon or look like a complete fool in front of the handsome Trainer. With a cracking voice he summoned out his first Pokemon, "Go! Steelix! Us Rock Slide!"

"Luxray! Double Team!" Volkner immediately reacted. The feline Pokemon moved in a circle around the large rock-and-steel type, running faster and faster until it was practically a blur. The armored snake tried to keep its eyes on its opponent, thrashing its tail until a vault of stones were ripped out from the Gym floor and flung into the air. But the Pokemon's timing was slightly off, and the Luxray escaped the avalanche unscathed, "Now use Fire Fang!"

Lucas swallowed hard. That attack was not something his Steelix needed. His panicked brain tried to think of a counter move against the fire attack, but the teen felt like a deer in the headlights. Watching Volkner's exhilaration in battle and those serious eyes seemed to paralyze the boy as badly as if he were the one struck with an electric attack. He knew he could defeat Luxray, but his shyness threatened to overwhelm him. Luckily his Steelix had not been knocked out by the move, but the Trainer could see it was severely weakened. "F-flash Cannon," Lucas stammered quietly. The serpent-like Pokemon turned and cocked its head, having not heard the command. The teen clenched his fist and shouted louder, "FLASH CANNON!"

It wasn't until he made the command a second time that he realized what a mistake he had made. He had selected Steelix for his team for its rock attacks, not its steel-based ones. Steel-type moves were not very effective against electric-types, something Lucas realized when the Gym Leader gave him a puzzled look that made the teen cringe. Shaking his head, Volkner announced another Fire Fang attack and this time the Steelix was finished.

Lucas wasn't panicking yet, but he was mentally screaming at himself for the genuinely stupid move he had made. Pulling a second Pokeball off of his belt, he summoned his next Pokemon, "Go! Stella! Hi Jump Kick!"

"Luxray! Charge Beam!"

Stella was a match for the Luxray in speed and leapt high in the air and came hurdling down to do a devastating kick to the electric-type, but the Luxray's Double Team was still active. In the last second the catlike Pokemon swerved out of the way and the Lopunny went crashing to the ground. Hi Jump Kick was a highly damaging move—provided it actually hit. But when it didn't, it was the attacking Pokemon that would take the damage instead. With this missed move Stella was badly weakened, and now the Luxray was free to make its move. With a roar, and the crackling of electricity, a blast of power came off its body and sent Stella flying into the cinder block. Lucas cursed himself. He was now down two Pokemon and the Luxray didn't even have a dent. He needed to do some damage, "Go Donna! Use Swift!"

There was no escape for the Luxray now. Swift could never miss so long as the Pokemon was on the field without some kind of force-field like Protect. And Donna could be just as fast as Stella was. A blanket of star-like pieces of energy filled the field and collided spectacularly into the Luxray. Fortune was finally smiling on Lucas, the Espeon's attack landed a critical hit. Volkner's expression became hard to read, "Luxray! Crunch!"

Once again luck was on Lucas' side. The cat Pokemon missed and Donna could survive for another hit. The teen knew he could not count on luck for a strategy, he needed to start clearing his thinking if he was going to get his final badge. If luck didn't get him any of his badges this far, the strongest Gym in the League wasn't about to be won by providence either. "Donna! Use Swift one more time!"

Luxray was knocked out. The teen was finally making a dent, but Volkner's expression made the tide of the battle hard to interpret. He seemed annoyed, but he also didn't seem like he was discouraged either, "Go Jolteon! Use Signal Beam!"

"Donna! Psychic!" It was Eevee evolution versus Eevee evolution. Both Pokemon were of equal speed and both got hit with each others attack at the same time. Though not a type advantage, the Psychic attack inflicted heavy damage, but the Jolteon's bug-based attack wounded the psychic-type just as badly, and a secondary effect once again put the teen on the defensive. After the attack Donna began to walk with a wobble, careening across the Gym floor as she tried to gain her footing. At first Lucas assumed she was just trying to stabilize herself after being so badly hurt, but after she didn't immediately straighten out, he realized something worse had happened. His Espeon was badly confused. "Come on Donna, snap out of it! Use Psychic again!"

"Jolteon! Charge Beam!" Volkner ordered, the grim expression on his face only growing more severe. Lucas' order fell on deaf ears as Donna couldn't tell front from back. The other Eeveelution's attack hit directly and the poor Espeon collapsed with a limp thud.

Things were going very badly for Lucas. It was only the second round and half his team was gone. In his last Gym Match he had gone against Candice and not lost a single Pokemon. Now in this fight for the most important badge in the League, he was barely able to knock out his opponent's first Pokemon. It wasn't because his team was weak, or that his strategies were flawed, or even because he wasn't prepared, but because his crippling shyness around those he found attractive was binding his thinking like a mental straight jacket. That was when Volkner sat down. The expression on his face was obvious now, and Lucas suddenly understood the irritation and frustration the Gym Leader had. It wasn't because he was angry about his Pokemon being knocked out, it was because he was disappointed in the match.

Lucas had helped save Volkner against hundreds of Cosmic grunts and had been a useful ally with Flint, to the Leader it seemed as though he would finally face a worthy opponent who would give him that exciting match he so desperately craved. But in this Gym battle he proved he as was pathetic and weak as the flocks of Trainers that bored Volkner so badly he debated on leaving his Gym. The Leader had given up now, and was now just waiting for the match to come to its inevitable end. Before looking at Volkner and his carefree, cool smile and his serious eyes would make Lucas' heart race, but now looking at the Leader with his dejected body language and despondent expression made his blood boil. And it wasn't because he was angry at Volkner for being as disappointed in him as his family was, it was because Lucas was furious at himself. He was going to lose this Gym Match and let his Pokemon get seriously hurt because of a crush. Because of his desire for a person who he knew very well had no interest in him romantically. And even on the small chance he was, would in no way be impressed with him acting as big of a wimp as he was now. Lucas refused to let that happen. He refused to let his Pokemon suffer for his shortcomings, or for his chances to become the Champion and finally outshine his brother to be lost because he thought someone was hot. His shyness had developed from the hurt of rejection, but disappointing his Pokemon felt way worse.

With the seriousness and determination he felt in every other Pokemon Battle, Lucas sent out his next Pokemon, his voice finally loud and confident as it should have been since the beginning of the match, "Gizmo, it's time to bring the beat down! Use Shadowball!"

With a snarling 'Vii!' the Eevee leapt off of his Trainer's shoulder with a somersault and summoned a ball of black energy above his head and sent it blasting towards the electric-type. Volkner raised an eyebrow at sudden new attitude of his opponent. But with no new enthusiasm, he issued another command to his Pokemon, "Another Charge Beam, Jolteon,"

Gizmo was hurt by the blast, but the evolved Eevee took far more damage. Lucas knew he was close to knocking this one out, "Just a little more, Gizmo! Do a Bite attack!"

"Pin Missile, Jolteon!" The Eevee didn't hesitate, racing between the sharp, projectile hairs shot out of the electric-type's back and launching himself forward. The smaller Pokemon sank its fangs into the Jolteon's flank and the final bit of damage was enough to make it collapse. Volkner was suddenly standing again, a more determined look on his face. Like many before him, he underestimated what that small Eevee could do, "Good job, Jolteon. Come on Raichu! Get the job done! Use Thundershock!"

"Gizmo! Shadowball again!" The match was slowly turning around again. Though the Raichu's attack was powerful, Gizmo's ghost-type move also did a healthy amount of damage. Both Trainers seemed to realize that if they continued all-out assaults, both Pokemon would be worn out. Other strategies would have to be used.

Volkner was grinning again, a smug look on his face from some trick up his sleeve, "Raichu! Use Dig!"

"You use Dig, too, Gizmo!" Lucas ordered. Volkner's smile widened even further. For the first time in the match, the slower Pokemon had the advantage. When both Pokemon were underground, it would be the second Pokemon to attack that would get the hit. Though only just barely, Gizmo was slower than the evolved form of Pikachu and with the electric-type's weakness against ground moves, the Raichu was now down for the count.

Volkner seemed just about giddy now, the sneer on his face not hiding the excitement in his normally serious eyes. "This isn't over yet, go Electivire!"

Lucas remembered this was one of the two behemoth's Volkner and Flint used against Mathias at the lighthouse. It was a powerhouse of raw energy, and would take a lot of work, even with Pokemon at a type advantage, to see this Pokemon go down, "Okay Gizmo, nice work, return! Go! Jaws!"

The land-shark dragon-and-ground type eyed its opponent with glittering, determined eyes. Like Hotrod it was a fierce battler, but unlike the Charizard, it preferred to toy with its opponents rather than simply overwhelm them with strength. And for this battle, that was exactly what the teen needed. Volkner seemed unintimidated, "Electivire! Slam attack!"

"Jaws! Dragon Claw!" The Gabite swiftly moved towards its opponent with its arms raised to slash the massive electric-type, but despite its huge bulk, the Electivire was still amazing agile. The Dragon Claw move missed and with its large, sweeping arm, the Electivire slammed as hard as it could into the dragon-type. Lucas' jaw dropped in shock as Gabite was thrown onto the ground instantly unconscious. Though he expected Volkner's Pokemon to be strong, the fact that it could knock out a dragon-and-ground type with one move was beyond amazing. Even if Lucas had managed to gain the edge after his earlier faltering, he knew there was still a possibility he could lose. Even with all his training, Volkner still proved to be as tough as the rumors claimed. But the teen opponent was still not ready to back down. He was going to face the Elite Four and become the new Champion. He didn't need to beat the blond man just because he needed the final badge, but to prove to himself that he could face that final challenge. The teen still had two Pokemon left, even with the rough start of the match and recalling his downed Gabite, Lucas summoned the his next Pokemon, "Okay Panzer, just a little more and that badge is ours. I know you can do it!"

During training the Rhyhorn had evolved to a Rhydon, and standing on its back legs the ground-type could match eyes with Volkner's massive Pokemon. Volkner was almost frenzied with excitement, his fists clenched and his eyes alive with fire, but this time Lucas was matching his determination, the teen's brown eyes facing his opponent's directly for the first time since the two met. The only thought running through his head now was taking out that Electivire. "Elecitivire, Megapunch!"

"Panzer, Earthquake!" The electric-type hit first, walloping the ground-type in the face like a boxer. Panzer shook off the stun and with a roar the entire building started to shake. As Flint fell to the floor with a flop both Volkner and Lucas stood their ground, as did the Electivire. It may have still been standing, but the Pokemon did not escape unharmed. With both tough Pokemon, Lucas knew he just had to outlast his opponent. Once again a fight of raw determination and stamina, "Earthquake again!"

"Megapunch!"

"Earthquake again!" Lucas commanded again. Even with each super effective attack, the Electivire stayed standing. The teen knew the battle had to end now and switched tactics for a final time.

Volkner could sense an end was coming as well, but there was no disappointment on his face this time. Just continued determination to take out a strong opponent, the end of the match no longer clear cut in his eyes, "Electivire, do Megapunch one more time!"

Lucas waited until the huge electric-type was close to his Pokemon before issuing the next attack. He knew his move was risky and had a high chance of failure, but at this range and with the Pokemon rushing his, he had to take the chance, "Horn Drill!"

As the Electivire made contact for a final time, the Rhydon's horn began to spin wildly, and with a thrash of the massive Pokemon's head lifted his opponent off the ground. The attack made contact. There was only one way this last round of attacks was going to end. Once a Horn Drill attack worked, regardless of type, defense or amount of hit points left, a Pokemon could not withstand it and automatically fainted. The match was over. Despite all odds, Lucas had won.

Once again Volkner was smiling, the kind of cheery, beaming smile normally more familiar on his friend Flint's face. With an easy jump, he recalled his fallen Pokemon and hopped off of his podium to approach his opponent, "That was probably one of the best battles I've ever had. I can't remember a fight that thrilling since the current Champion challenged me two years ago. Even the four badges I've given out were no where near as much of a rush as what you've given me today. I've gotta admit though, you scared me at first. But for whatever reason caused your slow start, you turned it around in an amazing way,"

With the adrenaline of the fight subsiding and the focus on the battle gone, Lucas' shyness around Volkner returned, but he could feel it was not as bad as earlier. As he promised himself, he would never again get intimidated by an opponent he found attractive. Though he could feel his face flushing, and still had a knot in his throat, he could look the blond Trainer in the eyes and concentrate on what was happening, "Performance jitters I guess. They weren't kidding when they said you're one of the best Trainers in the League,"

"Well, I've finally met someone better, and it gives me great pride to present you with this," reaching into the pocket of his shirt, Volkner pulled out the prizes awarded to a victor, "This is the Beacon Badge. With it any Pokemon, whatever the level, will obey you without hesitation and allow you to use Waterfall outside of battle. I also present you with the TM for Charge Beam, a great electric attack that's become my signature,"

Volkner tipped the prizes into Lucas' shaking hands. For a moment he couldn't tell what was causing the trembling, whether it was because the Leader was so close to him, or because the gravity of the moment was just now hitting him. For once the teen was speechless not because of his crush, but because of what getting this badge meant. The teen tried to say something, but he could not break the silence. Instead, it was the brightly humored man with the Afro who spoke first, "Well, Volk, it's been a nice visit, but it's time for me to hit the road. Brohawk got his last badge, that means he's going to be coming after me next. I've got to get ready for that. Next time we hang out, let's not have it because you are being held prisoner by a bunch of psychotic Pokemon thieves, m'kay?"

"That's an idea I can get behind," Volkner laughed. With a final flash of the peace sign, Flint headed out the Gym. Volkner turned one more time to Lucas and said his own goodbyes, "I'm very happy I could meet you. I'm grateful that you believed I wasn't behind Sunnyshore's troubles, grateful that you helped save me and the city, and grateful you gave me the kind of Pokemon battle that keeps me a Leader. But I'm happiest that I get to say I was part of the Journey for the next Champion of Sinnoh. The rumors I've heard about _you_ are just as true. There's really something special about you, kid. Knock 'em dead,"

Lucas still couldn't bring himself to speak, especially not after what Volkner just said. Instead he gave the Leader the most respectful bow he had ever given to anyone since becoming a delinquent and silently left the Gym knowing that the words the handsome Trainer had said to him would be ones he would never forget.


	41. Chapter 41 Lucas vs The Elite Four

Chapter 41: Lucas vs. the Elite Four

Several months ago Lucas was just a delinquent kid sent to live with a brother he hated rather than go to Juvenile Hall for a third time. He was rude, foul-mouthed, bad-tempered, violent and had looked at life with nothing but resentment and hopelessness. He had no real talents, his parents only looked at him with pity and disappointment and the one thing he ever truly cared about was taken by the person he hated the most: the person he was sent to live with, his older brother John. But all that changed with a sick Eevee found abandoned in the woods. After that day he was given a second chance at life and the dream he carried in his heart since he was a small child. With that Eevee by his side he had built a Pokemon team made of creatures that risked their lives for him as much as he for them, creatures that he protected, saved and became his true partners. He had made new friends, gained the admiration of brilliant professors and the best Trainers in Sinnoh and now he sat in the Pokemon Center in Sunnyshore City with a case full of eight badges and the honor of facing the Elite Four granted to him.

He would be seventeen soon and he could still be sarcastic, swear like a sailor and throw a nasty punch if the situation called for it, but during his Journey he managed to rediscover the kindness and goodness in his heart he long thought was gone. It was that kindness that made everyone admire his battling style. He was the Trainer who would protect his Pokemon at all cost, and through his battles would put their needs above his. It was because of this he was difficult to read and even harder to predict, and allowed him to defeat opponents who were training Pokemon, in some cases, longer than he had been alive. Now was the time to master his style once and for all, go up Route 223 to enter Victory Road and face the final challenge of the Sinnoh League that waited for him there.

Part of him wanted to rush to the League and face the Elite Four immediately, but he knew better than that. The small mistakes he made during his fights for the Gym Matches would prove disastrous against the best Trainers in the region. He only knew the specialties of two of the Elite Four members, Flint and Crasher Wake, and knew nothing of the other two members or the Champion. Lucas had no realistic way of discovering this information, so like against the Gym Leader Barry, he would be going in blind and would have to prepare for every contingency. But unlike the catastrophic Gym battle, the Mohawked teen would have to make sure he was even more prepared than his Pokemon. Sorting through his current team, the Pokemon in the PC and the TMs the Trainer accumulated during his travels, the teen would have to make some hard decisions. He would have to weigh loyalty against strength, speed against type advantage, how long a member had been part of a team against what the stats would say would guarantee a victory. The process was more difficult than Lucas could even anticipate as he was forced to decide who was the best amongst Pokemon he loved and admired equally.

After several days of contemplating, training, second-guessing, mixing and planning, the teen Trainer prepared his team against the massive challenge ahead. In the end his team would be made of Franky the Gyrados, Sparky the Rotom, Jaws the Garchomp, his female Haunter, Donna the Espeon, and last but not least, his very first Pokemon, Gizmo. Armed with what Lucas thought would be the ideal attacks and items, the teen left Sunnyshore City for the Sinnoh League in the north.

The waters of Route 223 proved to be the first hurdle of the final leg of the Sinnoh Challenge. The water was choked with Tentacruel and Tentacool, the only set of Pokemon species Lucas had a genuine hatred for. The bay also was the location of dozens of Trainers waiting to ambush any passersby that had escaped the jellyfish Pokemon onslaught. Despite the constant distraction and the teen's hate of Tentacool, Lucas managed to capture a Mantyke and found his way to the Pokemon Center at the foot of the waterfall that led to Victory Road. This waterfall proved to be the second challenge all wannabe Champions had to face on their way to the League. Not only was Waterfall a move only accessible to Trainers who had completed the Gym challenge, the natural obstacle could only be crossed by a high-level Pokemon that had the strength and the stamina to fight against gravity and the force of the rushing water. Once his team was healed, Lucas attempted this challenge for himself.

Franky had been taught the move in Sunnyshore City when a grateful citizen gave the teen the HM in appreciation for freeing the town from Team Cosmic's clutches. Now the two could finally test the move outside of battle. Lucas took his usual spot on the Gyrados' head just at the nape of the long Pokemon's neck and clung to spines that jutted out of the water-type's skull, the teen's Eevee on his shoulder. With a serpentine dive, Franky slide into the water from the shore just in front of the Pokemon Center, swimming away from the waterfall to make room to build up speed, before turning around and rushing back to the waterfall with all his might. With a dramatic splash the water-type began pushing himself and his Trainer up the cascade with all his might. The normally happy Pokemon's face was locked with determination and gritted teeth. Slowly, steadily the Gyrados worked its way up the waterfall, the water constantly pushing back down, countering the Pokemon's effort with equal force. Lucas continued to shout his encouragement to his Pokemon as the Pokemon Center below became smaller and smaller, but half-way up the massive waterfall, the Gyrados' strength began to fail. The speed at which Franky slid down made a mockery of the slow crawl they endured to get up as far as they did, but the teen refused to give in and let his Pokemon slide all the way back to the sea below. "C'mon Franky! You've got this!" Lucas screamed as the massive water-type started lurching back up the almost entirely vertical wall of water. The tattooed teen leaned himself forward to try to swing the momentum back up, Gizmo flattening his ears and leaning forward as well to help his teammate. "Go! Go! You can do this, pal!"

Franky let out a roar and with his second wind leapt up the waterfall. With the continued rhythm of lurch-lurch-leap, the Pokemon soared above the edge of the waterfall and landed with a splash in the river that fed from the mouth of a cave. The Gyrados cruised over to the mouth away from the edge and the rushing water, panting to catch his breath. Lucas patted the creature in congratulations, his own breath heavier as all his energy went into cheering on his loyal Pokemon. The second leg was over. They had made it to entrance of Victory Road. Once they passed this place and whatever obstacles lied within, their final stop would be the building that housed the battle arena for the Elite Four and the Champion.

Once inside the cave, Franky could properly rest as Lucas had to switch to moving on foot. The Pokemon of Victory Road proved to be as dangerous as the Trainers who were also on their way to face the Sinnoh League Challenge. Golbat seemed to ambush him almost incessantly and high-powered Rhydon, Onix, Gabite and Machoke made the artificially overpowered Pokemon of Iron Island seem less unreasonable. And just when Lucas thought he could catch a break away from the strongest wild Pokemon in Sinnoh, some of the strongest Trainers would face him instead. Like him, they all had defeated Roark, Gardenia, Fantina, Barry, Maylene, Candice, Byron and Volkner, and like him had the ambition of being the next Champion. To his opponents he was nothing more than a guinea pig to test out their strategies against the Elite Four, and did not hesitate to use their best moves. Lucas was forced to give everything he had to survive, but he held nothing personal against his opponents. With each defeated Trainer, the teen from Cherrygrove City proved he deserved to be there. And through the day and night without sleep, Lucas pushed himself further and further through Victory Road, passed more opponents, more Pokemon, rushing mountain streams and massive boulders until he exited to a clearing dimly lit by the not yet risen sun, following a road that was paved with white granite blocks and bronze statues of Pokemon. In front a second, even larger waterfall, stood two Pokemon League officials.

Upon seeing Lucas the two men approached him and greeted him cordially. The man on the left held out his hand and began his speech, "Welcome to the Pokemon League Headquarters of the Sinnoh Region. In order to enter you must prove that you are a Trainer worthy of facing and defeating the Elite Four and the current Champion. In order to prove this you must present the eight badges of the eight League-certified Gyms of the region as well as your Trainer ID card to verify you are who you claim,"

Wordlessly, the increasingly exhausted Trainer reached into his vest and presented the badge case and his Trainer Card to the waiting official. The badges shimmered as the sun finally began rising. The official observed the items carefully to make sure they weren't counterfeit, and once he was satisfied snapped the case closed and handed the badges and card back to Lucas. When the first official stepped back, it was the other man's turn to speak, "Once you go up this waterfall you will arrive at the Pokemon League building. There you can heal your Pokemon, restock supplies and rest. Be sure you are prepared, because once you start the challenge you cannot quit until your team is defeated. You must face all the members of Elite Four in a row. You will not be able to go back to the Pokemon Center between matches or change your team at any time, and all matches will start immediately as you enter the next Member's room. Do you understand the rules?"

"Yes," the teen answered simply. Satisfied that the rules were understood, the two officials went back to their posts and let Lucas pass. To get to the building that housed the Elite Four required going up one more waterfall in Franky's back. Only this last obstacle prevented him from reaching his goal. Nine years of heartache and frustration in his brother John's shadow, months of trudging across Sinnoh through mud, heat, cliffs and snow, going from town to town, battling Trainers, Leaders and Team Cosmic, facing and defeating personal demons and shortcomings all lead up to this moment. As the teen's loyal Gyrados seemingly flew up this second, larger waterfall, Lucas could feel his heart pounding, and the biggest smile spread across his face. Within moments, the Pokemon crested over the cliff's edge and like a shining beacon, illuminated with spotlights and the rising sun, appeared the Pokemon League.

"_Welcome ladies and gentlemen, our next challenger for the Sinnoh League Champion: Lucas from Cherrygrove City!_" a booming disembodied voice roared his announcement over a PA system as Lucas stepped through the doors to the first room of the Elite Four Challenge. Dozens of cameras all aimed at him as the exploits of the next potential Champion would be broadcast and commentated on on TVs and computers across the region. With a confident stride, the teen walked forward, ignoring the comments and explanations from the announcer. He had been waiting for this moment all his life, from the moment his parents' old friend let the boy play with his team and his obsession with Pokemon began. Though this moment had been delayed by John's selfishness and the teen's own bad behavior, nothing would take away the glory or excitement of what was happening, regardless of how the situation ended, "_Lucas has made waves over the past few months with his unique style and unorthodox team. This teen superstar is actually the little brother of former Champion John, who took the Pokemon world by storm almost a decade ago. Does Lucas have what it takes to face our current Elite Four and follow in his brother's footsteps?_"

"You bet your ass," Lucas said quietly as stopped in the middle of the room. His heart was pounding from a flood of excitement, exhilaration and nervousness. He knew in his heart that he deserved to be there more than anyone. There were few people who loved Pokemon as much as him, and John didn't show a moment's interest in the creatures until his birthday and the sudden decision to become a Trainer. And if a preening, self-centered golden boy such as Lucas' older brother could become a Champion, for the teen it meant the title was practically his destiny. Even so, he knew his opponents were no one to underestimate, and so he concentrated his nervous energy into laser-like focus, his brown eyes hardening like they did before any fight. As soon as the teen entered the center of the arena the blank, white walls lit up to a misty blue color that swirled in a way to give the effect he was underwater. The floor opened to a glass surface, underneath revealed an aquarium full of fish and water-type Pokemon swimming below. A second set of spotlights flashed at the front of the room as the first of the Elite Four arrived.

"Well, well, I was wondering when you were going to show up. The kid that Barry told was useless as a Trainer," a stocky, muscular man with a mask over his face stepped down from the podium. It was the famous wrestler and former Gym Leader, Crasher Wake. Lucas had stood up to the intimidating bulk of a man in Pastoria City, defending the obnoxious tween boy that insulted him. Now the boy would face the man Barry had idolized and claimed Lucas would have no chance against, "It takes a lot of skill and a lot of guts to get this far, but the Elite Four is a whole other level. It's impressive that you got this far, but this is where your challenge ends! Go! Quagsire!"

And with that action the Elite Four Challenge officially started. Time seemed to no longer have meaning as the man's Pokeball flew into the middle of the arena and released his first Pokemon. Part instinct, part developed reaction, Lucas threw his own Pokeball into the fray, "Go Donna!"

"Quagsire, Earthquake!"

"Donna! Toxic!" The swift Espeon reached her target first, spraying the Pokemon with the powerful poison before she leapt against the walls to avoid the dramatic lurching of the room that seemingly threatened to bring down the building and shatter the glass floor. Though Quagsire's simple facial expressions made their emotions difficult to read, its drooped body proved the toxin was working in full effect.

Neither Trainer broke their poker faces as they exchanged commands to their powerful Pokemon. The Espeon alternated between Psychic and Dark Pulse attacks while Crasher Wake tried to use his Quagsire's high defense to his advantage. A calculated turn to use an Antidote to stop the poison's progression gave Lucas an edge to use one final Dark Pulse attack to bring the water-and-ground type to its defeat. The next round consisted of Crasher Wake's Floatzel, an opposite in speed and strengths to the slow-but-bulky Quagsire. This pure water-type allowed Donna to use her Charge Beam attack, but the Floatzel's Crunch attack nearly side-lined the psychic-type in one hit.

Lucas recalled his Espeon and sent Garchomp to the field. Though part ground-type, its dragon attribute neutralized any extreme damage even a Hydropump had to offer. Speedy Dragon Claw slices and Headbutts took out the Floatzel once and for all. The next round proved dragon against sea monster as Crasher Wake sent his own Gyrados to the field. This beast of a water-type clearly didn't have the same kind of sweet temper Franky exhibited, but instead had the warrior's heart like Hotrod did. The battle-lusting Garchomp became invigorated by the challenge. The two attackers wailed against each other with devastating blows of sheer power, but the round went to Crasher Wake. The teen opponent reacted instantly as Franky appeared before his same-specied rival. The two Gyardos threatened to tear the room apart, but neither Trainer backed down. With a powerful Hyperbeam, Franky came out ahead.

Both battlers recalled their Pokemon for their forth round, a fresh start in a tense match. "Go Vaporeon!" Crasher Wake called out.

Lucas had only one Pokemon he would use against an Eeveelution, his own first Pokemon, "Gizmo! Show them what you're made of! Use Shadowball!"

"Aurorabeam, Vaporeon!" As the tiny Eevee shot out a ball of energy at his opponent the mermaid-like Pokemon countered with a beam of rainbow-colored ice. The two waves of power clashed together to form a powerful explosion, but one that left neither fighter harmed. Once again, a fierce fight of rivalry began. Gizmo's speed and varied attacks clashed against Vaporeon's high special attack and amazing evasiveness. When attacks hit, they hit with extreme force, when they missed, they missed spectacularly. Crasher Wake seemed confident that it would be his creature that would come out the victor of this match, but Lucas had complete faith in Gizmo. The tiny normal-type was above all a survivor, and would survive this match just he survived ones even more difficult. Gizmo dove underground to dodge a Hydropump and crashed back up underneath his opponent. Though at a type disadvantage, Gizmo managed to score a critical hit. Now the infamous wrestler was down to his last Pokemon.

In a fitting tribute to nostalgia and Lucas' perseverance and stubbornness, Crasher Wake's final Pokemon was a Tentacruel, the Pokemon that no doubt inspired the type specialty of the only Gym Leader the teen ever lost against. The Trainer's chest tingled in remembrance of the sting he received as a small boy from the only species of Pokemon he actually hated. But this fight would not end in the same way it did with Barry when Lucas first had to encounter this kind of Pokemon in battle. Recalling Gizmo to save his strength, the tattooed Trainer sent out what he thought was the ideal Pokemon: Sparky.

Lucas smiled when the Pokemon appeared on the field. It still examined its surroundings and its opponent's Trainer before bothering with the actual match. The teen had learn to accept his Pokemon's oddity, because even if the Rotom was spacey, its loyalty was never doubted. The jellyfish Pokemon attempted to swat the other monster out of the air with one of its tentacles but Sparky snapped to attention before the hit could collide. For the Tentacruel's ferocious temperament, it had no chance against the deceptively easy-going Pokemon. Crasher Wake and Lucas continued to bark commands to their creatures, and each Pokemon exchanged spectacular attacks, but Sparky's lackadaisical style was the one that triumphed. Leisurely dodged attacks would be countered with blasts of high voltages and in a few shorted rounds, the hated jellyfish Pokemon collapsed onto the glass arena floor.

The pumping adrenaline caused a rushing in Lucas' ears and didn't hear the announcement above declaring the match go to him. It wasn't until Crasher Wake recalled his Pokemon and gave the teen a hearty bow that he realized he was victorious. He had actually done it, he had defeated a member of the Elite Four, "Congratulations, young man. Like Barry I had underestimated your talent and your drive. Though I don't know if you can defeat the rest, you have my full respect for your skills in defeating me,"

Though the victory provided an exhilarating rush, Lucas had no time to drink in this victory. The rest of the Elite Four and the Champion waited for him and with a small respectful farewell, the teen healed his Pokemon and stepped through the next set of doors.

"_The wunderkind from Johto is off to a fine start, taking out our favorite wrestler and water-type hero, Crasher Wake. But things can only get harder for our potential Champion as each Elite Four member increases in difficulty. Things are going to really 'heat up' with the second member of the challenge!_" Once more blank walls and floors transformed as the tattooed team came to face his next opponent. Sweat instantly formed on the back of his neck as he was hit by a powerful blast of high heat. The lights transformed into a glaring red and the floor opened to a single corridor surrounded on either side by flowing lava.

"Yo! Brohawk! Great to see you again, dude. This fight is going to be awesome, I can feel it!" from the podium above, Flint came bouncing down to greet his opponent. Lucas couldn't help but smile to see a friendly face again, but he knew better than to let his guard down. The two had partnered in battle in the Cosmic assault against Sunnyshore City and the boy had seen Flint's team in battle, and of all the Elite Four members, knew most what the deceptively cheery-mannered man was capable of. With pleasantries out of the way, the battle began. Flint sent out his Rapidash first to which Lucas responded with his Garchomp. The horse-like Pokemon would constantly use the flying move Bounce to avoid attacks, and its speed made touching it difficult. The Garchomp would miss more often not, but when successful, the Rapidash would get badly hurt. The drawn out battle finally went to Lucas, as the land-shark eventually took out its equestrian opponent.

Next Flint sent out his Flareon, a challenge Lucas could only respond with Gizmo. The Elite Four member was no fool, and having seen the tiny Eevee in action knew better than to underestimate to normal-type. Dig attacks would be sabotaged, Shadowballs would be dodged. As the Afroed man read the other red-head's attacks, Lucas seriously considered calling Gizmo back for another Pokemon. But seeing the determined Eevee in action decided on a different course of action. Though Flint had seen most of Gizmo's attacks during their time together, the teen boy had taught his Pokemon a new move before coming to Victory Road. Using a TM, he taught the Eevee a move he thought would best suit the teen's relationship with his Pokemon. "Gizmo! Use Return!"

Return, a normal-type move that was more powerful the more the Pokemon loved its Trainer. Lucas and Gizmo had faced all sorts of obstacles and challenges together, including once again seeing the Trainer who had abandoned the Eevee in Eterna Forest. If there was one thing that the teen knew above all else, it was that it was that his Eevee loved him with everything he had. He knew, because he felt that way about the tiny brown creature that became his dearest friend. It was an easy bet that paid back in spades. The Return attack slammed the Flareon almost into the lava, and finally giving the round to Lucas.

The tattooed boy could see the corners of Flint's mouth twitch, an increasing anger behind his easy-going facade, he knew he would have to be careful for the next Pokemon to be summoned. The red-head with the Afro next summoned out his Infernape, a Pokemon with fighting powers in addition to its fire attribute. Even with Gizmo's Return power, Lucas knew a switch would be best. The teen brought out the female Haunter next. Her ghostly attacks made short work of otherwise unstoppable Pokemon, and the Elite Four member was down to his last two Pokemon

Flint sent out a Houndoom next, which Lucas answered with Franky. This too would prove to be a short round and now the older man was down to his final Pokemon. This was the creature that had Lucas concerned since the beginning of the match, the powerhouse compliment to Volkner's Electivire: Magmortar.

Lucas knew this fight would be the most difficult, and knew he would probably lose most of his Pokemon in this fight alone. Though a prospect he disliked intensely, he saw no way around it. Like a army division against a powerful military complex, Lucas worked to chip away at the Pokemon's defenses while trying to keep his loses to a minimum. He tried cursing, poisoning and confusing the massive Magmortar while he would take turns to revive and heal his Pokemon. Flint would respond with Full Heals, but Lucas would just start again. Though the fight was hell between the Pokemon's vicious attacks and the room's intense heat, all of Lucas' team continued their part of the strategy, accepting the pain they endured while Lucas tried everything in his power to do his best to help them avoid it. After a countless number of turns, the titan-like Magmortar fell and now Flint, too, was defeated.

The Elite Four member's reaction was not what the teen was expecting after his lose. The man was no longer smiling, and refused to say anything. Lucas began to question what was wrong when a second figure stepped out from the podium reducing the boy's voice to a choked squeak. It was Volkner, "Nice to see you again, Lucas,"

"L-likewise." the teen stammered.

After the cheerful greeting, the blond man approached his best friend and flicked him painfully on the ear. Flint mumbled something the Mohawked teen couldn't hear and then Volkner turned back to the Elite Four member's opponent, "Sorry about this. Unfortunately, Flint's sort of a bad loser. So don't let the hissy fit bother you. He really is happy for you. Good luck with the next round,"

With an unfortunately goofy smile, Lucas said goodbye to the two best friends and proceeded to face the third member of the Elite Four.

"_With the hippy hot-head defeated, Lucas had made it through half-way of the Elite Four challenge. Just two opponents remain before this young man will meet our current Champion. But before facing the current one, this sensational Trainer must face one of our former Champions. Let's see if can survive her!_" The white room's lights instantly dimmed and a strange mist began filling the area. Lucas had no idea who his next opponent was, and worse yet, what his next opponent's team would be like. While the first two members of the Elite Four were difficult, he at least knew what to expect. Now the real challenge would begin. Taking a deep calming breath, the teen stepped towards the podium where his opponent sat. In the darkened room he could not see the person's face, but upon hearing her voice could feel his face flush as badly as it did when he saw Volkner again. It was a deep, throaty voice that belonged to an older woman, "I told you we'd be seeing each other again soon, Lucas,"

The next member of the Elite Four was Cynthia, the woman he had met in Celestic Town and saw during the Cosmic battle.


	42. Chapter 42 Lucas vsThe Elite Four prt2

Chapter 42: Lucas vs. The Elite Four part. 2

The challenge of the Elite Four.

One of the most difficult obstacles any Trainer has to face, and the reason why the current Champion changed so seldomly. After a Trainer battled across the land to collect eight different badges in eight different town against eight different Pokemon specialties, they would have to face an obstacle of water, rock and stamina known as Victory Road. All to face a succession of four battles against the strongest Trainers in the League for the honor of facing the Champion in a final battle to prove who was the most powerful Trainer in all of Sinnoh. And despite these hurdles and many others, Lucas had managed to get this far. Over several months he had gotten his badges, and over several days crossed Victory Road. He had even gotten half-way past the Elite Four, and now only two more people stood in his way. He had defeated Crasher Wake and Flint and now he had entered the room belonging to the third member. He had no idea who he would face next until an alluringly familiar voice called out to him, "I told you we'd be seeing each other again soon, Lucas,"

His next opponent was Cynthia, the beautiful, older, blond woman that had tended his wounds in Celestic Town after he was charged by Professor Rowan to deliver a package to her. Though out of his age group, and far out of his league, the teen had instantly developed a crush on the woman with long hair and even longer legs. Before he left the town for Mt. Coronet to go to the next Gym, Cynthia had told Lucas cryptically that they would meet again. Seeing the woman again so suddenly robbed the young man of just about all his mental functions. Just before seeing her again, the teen ran into another one of his crushes, Volkner, just in the previous room. Seeing two people he found so attractive in one day was just too much for the otherwise confident young man. When Cynthia greeted him and stepped down from her podium, all he could do was let out a croak and do everything in his power not to face-plant against the now hidden floor of the arena.

"I was confident you would get this far, Lucas. I have heard you are a good Trainer who greatly cares about his Pokemon. But now's the time to show me if you have what it takes to be great. I'm not just an Elite Four member, I was also the previous Champion before the current Champion defeated me two years ago. I am an expert in Pokemon types as well as research. For the Elite Four I have chosen to specialize in psychic-types. I like you Lucas, but I respect you too much to hold back even a little. Do whatever you can to defeat me, because otherwise, your story ends here,"

A sudden well of willpower came from somewhere deep inside Lucas. Every single relationship the teen had been in, male or female, was always initiated by his partner. For all of the teen's cockiness and his almost reckless defiance against those in authority or people who had insulted him, he always became amazingly shy and nervous around people he found attractive. It was a personal nuisance and shame to the otherwise confident and determined young man, but he begrudgingly accepted that whoever he would end up spending the rest of his life with would probably have to ask him first. But despite his crush on his next opponent, his mental paralysis would not occur, because between his personal instinct to act like a complete and useless fool, a second instinct took control. The instinct to protect and honor his Pokemon no matter what. He nearly cost himself the Gym match against Volkner in Sunnyshore City because of his infatuation and he swore to himself he would never let anything like that happen again. So despite the way the dim light played on Cynthia's glamorous features, all of Lucas' focus was on one thing and one thing alone: winning.

"Go Haunter!" Lucas roared.

"Go Alakazam!" Cynthia called back in her deep, sultry voice.

Though his crush on the black-clad older woman was no longer a factor in the match, it did little to make the battle any easier. Lucas could see why this woman had been the Champion and the person who defeated his older brother for the title. Her team was well trained, well-conditioned and incredibly experienced. There were no flaws in her strategies or mistakes in her attacks and she would shift and switch out her Pokemon just as often as he did. The teen boy felt a complete idiot to think suppressing his crush on her would be the biggest obstacle he would have to cross in this match. Even at an intense disadvantage he was not about to back down, he had come too far to go home empty-handed. He had even gone as far as to defeat two of the Elite Four members.

Alakazam, Jynx, Gallade, an Espeon and Bronzor all pushed Lucas' team back, knowing attacks like Hyperbeam, Psychic, Earthquake and Toxic Spikes to sabotage all the boy's attempts to turn the match around. That was when Lucas realized his main flaw. He was playing too defensively. It wasn't enough to just survive these attacks or react, he had to take back control. While none of his moves were wrong or poorly selected, he needed something that would bring the damage while hopefully not harming his own Pokemon too badly. Lucas started his new strategy by reviving his Haunter for the third time. Cynthia's poker face revealed no information when the teen sent the Pokemon to the field another time. The first two times the opposing Trainer had knocked her out quickly with her much faster Alakazam and Espeon. For this round she brought back her Jynx, a Pokemon only slightly damaged by a lucky Dragon Claw from Jaws before her ice attacks took the dragon out. This time Lucas didn't hold back. He didn't try to curse or hypnotize the human-like Pokemon. Instead he just went out for straight Shadowball attacks.

The new offensive seemed to have an effect. Like the arduous take down of Flint's Magmortar, the teen kept throwing everything he had and shifted strategies whenever Cynthia's tactics changed. When switching out her Pokemon proved too costly, Lucas could afford to cast strategies that required a few rounds to set up. When switching proved beneficial to the experienced Trainer, Lucas focused on the most powerful attacks his Pokemon knew. Slowly, in an unknown time in the dimly lit, misty arena, Cynthia's team started to get knocked down. First her Gallade met his defeat against Jaws, then Haunter managed to take out Alakazam and Jynx before being knocked out again and with the combined efforts of Sparky and Franky against the high-defensed Bronzor the older woman was pushed to her final Pokemon.

And then once again Lucas was put to a trial by fire, another match that required fast thinking on his feet as old, tired and true strategies and even his fresher ideas proved useless. For a claim of a psychic specialty, Cynthia's final Pokemon proved to be neither. Bringing up old memories of when the teen met his rival Morgan all the way back in Solceon Town, the former Champion's last trump card was the ghost-and-dark type, Spiritomb.

Untouchable by normal, fighting or psychic attacks, and practically unfazed by ghost attacks, Spiritomb proved be a battle that put the previous four Pokemon and the seemingly infinite amount of rounds before then to be the warm-up act. Dark Pulse attacks, Dream Eater attacks and Thunderbolts threatened to once again bring the Mohawked teen to defeat. Memories of how the boy had even caught a Spiritomb blanked as he struggled to figure out how to take out the final Pokemon.

For most of the battle the two Trainer's exchanges consisted exclusively of shouted commands and words of encouragement to their respective Pokemon. But just like right before the match, Cynthia addressed Lucas directly, "This fight has been going on for a long time. You look exhausted and your Pokemon are probably even more tired than you are. Even if you survive this match against me, in this shape you won't stand a chance against the last Elite Four member and the Champion. This battle today has proven to me that you are every bit the Trainer I thought you are, but I don't think you're completely ready for this. If you forfeit, you'll still have every ounce of my respect. Think of your team Lucas. I may not know you well, as this is only the second time we've met, but if that boy with the bloody cheek and sleeping Pokemon was the real you, than I know they're the most important thing to you,"

Lucas smiled, "Trying to take care of me again? I appreciate that, but you really don't need to. You're right that to me my team is the most important thing in the world, even more important than my own life. You're right about another thing you said to me right before this match started, that if I don't beat you my story ends in this room. It's because I love my Pokemon that I can't quit. I only took the Elite Four challenge because I thought I could win, that I had trained my Pokemon well enough to survive this battle. I've jumped the gun before, but I like to think I'm not as stupid as I used to be. If I quit now it means I was cruel enough to expose my team to something they weren't ready for, and that's something I'd never do. Because if I did, then I'd have to quit being a Trainer entirely because I wouldn't deserve the title. You promised me you wouldn't hold back, Cynthia. Don't show me you're a liar,"

The blond woman gave the younger boy a huge, warm smile before bowing her head to him. Her long hair cascaded into her face, obscuring half of it. As she pulled her face back up to reengage in battle, her eyes were narrowed and her expression set in cold determination. This fight was going all the way to the end. And despite the mountain of advantages the calculating, experienced woman and her team had, Lucas was still sure he could win, even if he wasn't exactly sure how. Suddenly the boy had an epiphany. He was able to catch the Spiritomb not because he had used something with a distinct advantage, but simply because his attacks were strong. Once again he wasn't paying attention and let Cynthia dictate the match. And like his battle against Morgan in the fight for the Pokemon, he ignored the human element and her actions, and focused entirely on the Pokemon. Jaws, then Gizmo, and back to Jaws, Lucas finally took out the Spiritomb with shear force.

The third battle was over. The lights in the room finally came back up, nearly blinding the teen who had adjusted to the dark. Once again the wave of adrenaline subsided and the toll of the battle hit the tattooed teen. Cynthia was right about one thing, he was quickly becoming utterly exhausted. As Lucas slouched slightly to catch his breath, the older woman approached him with poise in her posture, grace on her face and kindness in her eyes and smile. The end of the battle meant Lucas' feelings also came flooding back and his face involuntarily went red. The woman lifted her hand and traced the side of Lucas' face, "I see you did as I told you with the salve, the scar is almost gone. I guess I should have known better what you are capable of. After seeing how you came to Celestic Town the hard way and how determinately you went to Mt Coronet so soon after. Take care of yourself and your Pokemon. The next time we see each other I don't want it because you had to try the Elite Four challenge again,"

Once again Lucas left the room wordlessly, only able to give the beautiful woman a nod.

"_Lucas has done it again and now only one obstacle stands between him and the current Champion, Dawn. Through a long, tense, nail-biter of a fight our rebellious challenger has taken out the near-unstoppable Cynthia. But now he has to face a veteran battler who has been part of the Elite Four for nearly three decades, the Grounded Matron!_" For all Lucas' bluster and determination, that impulsive promise to his brother in the middle of their fight about becoming a multi-league Champion, it still felt incredibly surreal to be standing in this room, in the room of the final member of the Elite Four. Unlike the previous three arenas, this final room had no gimmicks, no light shows, just the plain white walls and a dirt floor covered with rocks, gravel and a few stone formations. And standing before him at her podium was a severe old woman wearing a fur stole. Her eyes were wise and serious, and despite her age and the enlarged bones in her hands that suggested she had arthritis, she stood tall and proudly, the air of dignity from someone who had rightfully earned her place. Her appearance and the way she watched him shuffle towards her reminded him of his maternal grandmother, a sharp-tongued old lady who didn't suffer fools. But he wasn't stupid when it came to sizing up opponents, there was more general than socialite standing before him.

The calculating way she watched him and the way she stood reminded Lucas just how tired he really was. Not only had he just had three back-to-back battles with the strongest Trainers in the League, they were also some of the longest battles he ever encountered. Only the exhausting war-like fights against Cosmic had left him as drained as he felt now. Gizmo slumping on his shoulder only proved his team was even more tired than he was. But even feeling the way he did now, he did his best to straighten out and face the old woman eye-to-eye. As the two Trainers stared each other down, neither said anything, only the running commentary of the announcer made a din in the plainly set up room.

After a seeming eternity the old woman broke the silence, "I've heard a lot about you, young man. The prickly looking boy with the Eevee who came to Sinnoh out of nowhere and helped take down Team Cosmic. I'm not impressed. I don't buy into hype, I only believe what I see for myself. If you want my respect you're going to have to beat me,"

The old woman's statement caused Lucas to bristle. She may have been older and a more experienced Trainer, but he had earned the right to be there. He had worked very hard to become the Trainer—and the person—he was, standing before the veteran. And to be so easily dismissed was an insult he wasn't going to tolerate, "Don't worry Granny, you can count on it. I don't buy into hype either. Just because you're a member of the Elite Four doesn't make you better than me,"

"I must say I do admire your spirit," The woman gave her opponent a small smile but her eyes remained fierce and proud, "My name is Bertha and my specialty is ground-type Pokemon. When I first became an Elite Four member Professor Oak was still just Sam, Professor Rowan's aide and most of the current Gym Leaders were in diapers if they were alive at all. I've met a thousand kids like you and I'll meet a thousand more. You don't back down, but that isn't enough of a strategy to get past me. Go Whiscash!"

"Go Sparky!" Lucas roared and the battle began. Many might have seen the teen's first move as strange for his first selection to be an electric-type. The water-and-ground type fish was untouchable by electric moves, much like the rest of Bertha's team would be, and in turn electric-types were extremely weak against ground moves, but Lucas had a plan. The Rotom's Levitate ability prevented ground moves from hitting, taking away one of the two lethal disadvantages the Pokemon had. "Use Confuse Ray!"

The attack did no good, the dopey-eyed catfish had the ability Own Tempo, preventing the Pokemon from getting confused and Bertha responded immediately, "Whiscash! Rock Blast!"

The slow fish slammed itself against the ground causing the rocks and boulders from the arena floor to be launched up, and collided painfully with the cheerful ghost. The teen boy recalled Sparky immediately, the damage was high but thankfully the Pokemon wasn't knocked out. Next he called out his Gyrados. The faster Pokemon was able to blast two Waterfall attacks while only getting hit by one more Rock Blast attack, defeating Bertha's Whiscash. The old woman reacted confidently by next sending out her Hippowdon that caused a blinding Sandstorm to whip up on the field. Though the attack could never hit, Bertha kept ordering her Pokemon to use Dig, giving the ground-type a chance to get away from damaging moves for a turn while the Gyrados continued to get knocked by the damaging sand. Though Franky did his best to damage the hippo-like Pokemon whenever he could, Lucas didn't want his creature to just pointlessly take damage while he waited out his opponent. He switched out his Pokemon again, this time calling on Jaws the Garchomp to finish off the opposing Pokemon.

"Use Earthquake!" Lucas ordered after switching out the Pokemon. Bertha had previously ordered the Hippowdon to once again use Dig while Franky was still on the field and now underground it was helpless to escape the dragon-and-ground type's powerful attack. Two Pokemon down now. For all the old woman's bluster Lucas was in the best shape of the Challenge since facing Crasher Wake. The teen wasn't about to let his guard down, but he wasn't going to let the momentum he was building go to waste either. Bertha's next Pokemon was Rhyperior, the final form of the Rhydon line like the Trainer Riley had. The teen knew what he was getting into and knew he had to be especially careful. This Pokemon would be extremely powerful and Lucas had to bank on speed rather than power.

The next round became a duel of Earthquake attacks, both Pokemon having weakness to the move due to their secondary types. Jaws with his dragon attribute and Rhyperior with a secondary rock-type. Like Franky, Jaws was able to get off two moves to his opponent's one, but the rhino-like Pokemon still had more stamina. Though greatly weakened the Rhyperior still had some power left, while the Garchomp became the first Pokemon on Lucas' team to get knocked out. It was a setback, but Lucas wasn't going to get fazed that easily. The teen then sent out Donna and switched her out with Haunter when the Rhyperior used another Earthquake attack that nearly knocked the Espeon out.

"It's an unbelievably amateurish move to switch out your Pokemon as often as you are," Bertha remarked as she sent out her fourth Pokemon, a Golem.

"I don't like seeing my Pokemon get hurt," Lucas snapped back.

"If you don't want your Pokemon to get hurt then why are you a Trainer? Pokemon battling is about having your Pokemon attacking your opponent until they are defeated. If you aren't willing to let your Pokemon take damage, how do you expect to win? It's a miracle you've gotten this far and if switching out your Pokemon just as I'm about to knock them out is your master strategy, then we might as end this now because you _will_ lose that way," Bertha stated seriously.

"Pokemon fight naturally, that's true, and when they fight they get hurt. But Pokemon training isn't about wailing on each other, I know this from years of fighting on the street. It's about testing their strength and your heart and mind. My Pokemon are going to get injured, but I never want them hurt more than they have to be, just enough to prove how strong they are. That's my strategy, not retreating. And if you don't get that I can't wrap my brain how you've managed to be an Elite Four member this long!" Lucas pushed back defiantly.

Bertha's polite smile transformed into a more genuine one, "I'm surprised you don't fight more like your brother. That's right, young man, I know you're the baby brother of John. It's been nearly ten years since I've fought him but genuinely good battles stay in my mind. He definitely wasn't one of those anonymous young Trainers I take out on a daily basis. He understood real battling. He had faith in his Pokemon and wasn't afraid to let them get scuffed up a bit to win. He treated his team like his equals, not like the weak pets you treat your Pokemon as,"

"I'm glad I'm not like him. That's the nicest thing you've said to me this whole battle," Lucas hissed. His patience with the self-righteous old woman was more than up. More than any other battle, he was not going to lose here and now. He would not have her think she proved him right, "I have faith in my Pokemon. They aren't pets, they aren't tools and they aren't soldiers. They're my friends. I know they'll do whatever it takes to win, but I won't abuse that trust they have in me. When I first came to Sinnoh I was supposed to live with my brother—that guy John you think you admire so much. On the day I arrived he left me on my own instead of picking his little brother up from the docks in a strange region like my parents told him to. When I was dragging my lost ass to _his_ house I came across a sick Eevee that was just about to die. That Eevee was what made me become a Trainer. When I told my brother what I was going to do and showed him my Pokemon, he summoned out his Nidoking and that little Eevee stood his ground. Even though he almost died just a few hours earlier, if I would have said so, he would have attacked that Pokemon that was at least twenty-times bigger than he was.

"Over these past few months that I've become a Trainer, my Pokemon and I have seen and been through a lot. Situations where any of us could have been seriously hurt or killed if we weren't there for each other. My Pokemon sure as hell aren't weak, and I don't need to see them get hurt in order to prove that to you or anyone else. And when this battle is over Grandma, you better believe you won't forget about me even when they're dragging your wrinkly, senile corpse to the home. You're going to remember not 'John's baby brother', 'that delinquent' or the 'former champion's sibling' but Lucas. Lucas, the kid from Cherrygrove City!" Lucas roared defiantly. With this final battle cry the teen and his team came back from the brink and turned the final match of the Elite Four Challenge. Bertha's Golem stood no chance against a reenergized Franky. And against the old woman's final Pokemon, a speedy Gliscor, victory came from Gizmo, the Eevee the tattooed boy found abandoned by his Trainer and underestimated in nearly every match Lucas had.

As the dust and sand cleared after the end of the battle, the old woman who had been part of the Elite Four for as long as much people could remember was smiling brightly, a soft, kind look to her eyes as she confronted her opponent. Bertha took defeat graciously, the mark of both an honorable warrior as much as an old woman who still found new things to learn even as her time on earth was steadily marching to its close, "You're very right Lucas. This will most certainly a battle that will stick in my mind for years to come. Congratulations young man, you have defeated the Elite Four,"


	43. Chapter 43 Lucas vs The Champion

Chapter 43: Lucas vs. The Champion

One after another the battles came. First the former Gym Leader, Crasher Wake and his confident offense, then the deceptively easy-going Flint with his unending flames. Next he faced Cynthia and her fluid strategies and mind-seizing beauty followed by the powerful veteran Bertha. Yet despite every challenge and obstacle these mighty Trainers threw at him, Lucas came ahead victorious. He had done it. He had defeated the Elite Four. Now the right to face the Champion was his. After the old woman bowed her head in respect to the young man that had defeated her the door behind her podium opened wide and from behind it the teen could hear a deafening roar.

The arena for the Champion was a stark contrast to the rooms of the Elite Four. Compared to the claustrophobic, specialized fields for each of the member's specialties, with their white walls that transformed only when the battle was about to begin, this final arena felt gargantuan. The Champion's Arena was the size of a football field, with giant spotlights illuminating the ground and the darkening sky above giving the teen a rough idea of just how long he and his Pokemon were battling without rest or a chance for recovery. Surrounding the field were thousands of seats now all filled with people screaming and cheering in anticipation of the battle that would soon begin. The gravity of the situation, compiled with the sheer exhaustion of the challenge made Lucas feel small and unsure, a feeling he didn't have so strongly since his first Gym Match against Gardenia in Eterna City, a fight that now felt an eternity ago. Yet at the same time it felt like it was only yesterday he was an entirely different person: a foul-mouthed delinquent who respected no one, defaced property and got into a fight with whomever triggered his short temper. Though he was aware of the cameras that had recorded his exploits against the Elite Four and broadcast them to the world, this was the first match in the history of his Journey where he would have an audience of so many people. Suddenly the excitable announcer who had commentated on the matches which Lucas had mainly tuned out now seemed a more looming presence, the voice shaking the teen's body as the sound from the speakers rose above the spectators' dull roar.

_Ladies aaaaaand Gentlemaaaaan!_ The announcer boomed. _This is the moment we've all been waiting for! The battle that determines who will be the Champion—the strongest Trainer in all of Sinnoh. For months Lucas, the scrappy fighter from Cherrygrove and the little brother of the former Champion John, has been battling across the region to carve out a name and legacy of his own. He has collected the eight badges required by the League to enter the Pokemon League Headquarters and has gone as far as defeating the Elite Four. His opponent Dawn, the youngest Champion in Sinnoh history, has kept the title for two years after defeating Cynthia and is largely responsible for taking down the menace that was Team Galactic. Whatever the outcome, this match will be one for the record books!_

The roar of the crowd got even louder and in the noise Lucas realized hundreds of people were screaming his name in unison. Chanting for him to be the winner. The teen's heart raced as he realized people were rooting for _him_. Even if he lost this match he would still be considered one of the strongest Trainers in the region, be welcomed at the Trainer Club and shown respect wherever he went. But he could not lose. Even if the title of Champion was an honor and glory unto itself, for Lucas it had to be a stepping stone. Three more leagues waited for him after this, and then a final confrontation with the person he hated most in this world: his brother John.

The lighting in the arena shifted as the main lights dimmed and a single spotlight lit with an audible click on the far side of the arena, illuminating the single figure that stood opposite of the field. Once again the visual and audible noise seemed to fade for Lucas. The cheering crowd, the rambling announcer disappeared as his focus condensed on the person who was to be his opponent. Dawn. The Champion. The Final Obstacle. The two combatants walked towards the middle of the field to greet one and other before the battle. And finally, Lucas could meet the mysterious Champion whose exploits had contributed to the history of Sinnoh and the downfall of the corrupt form of Team Galactic.

"I've heard a lot about you and the wonderful things you've done, Lucas!" Dawn said happily, "It's such a pleasure to finally meet you. I really look forward to battling you!"

"The same," Lucas replied. In the young man's eyes, Dawn was just a little girl, like any of the young Trainers he passed in the cities he visited or battled along the roads. She had large, shining blue eyes, long, dark-blue hair and a big, sweet, beaming smile. She wore a pink stocking cap and a scarf over a cheery dress with long socks, one having slid down back to her foot. She did not appear the looming, cryptic, final challenge promised to him since the day he started Training all those months ago. He did not underestimate her prowess. After all, she was the Champion, the girl described by both her friends Barry the Gym Leader and Lucas, Professor Rowan's assistant as an amazing Trainer and by Saturn as the girl who single-handedly brought down Galactic, as well as defeated Cynthia when she was Champion. But despite this, seeing the girl with her joyful, gentle smile made Lucas feel at ease. She gave off neither the seriousness of a proud warrior, the false calm of an experienced tactician nor the smarmy happiness of a confident expert. All the nervousness, doubts, sense of smallness—even his exhaustion—disappeared around this young girl. Her smile told the young man this wasn't a battle with high stakes, honor or the the title of Champion on the line. This would not be a battle between two desperate forces with clashing ideologies or a fight of hated rivals.

It was going to be a battle for fun.

Like Lucas' first battle against the boy outside Eterna with his Bidoof and Starly. Like the battle that made Morgan and himself rivals. Like the Pokemon Contests that his crush Ashley participated in. This was a battle where through each others' Pokemon, attack choices and strategies the two would learn about each other and possibly become friends. The way battles between Trainers were supposed to be. The way that inspired Lucas to want to train Pokemon back when his parents' friend stopped by and showed the boy his team. The tattooed young man found himself smiling. Not his normal sneering, smirk that he usually had just before a battle or fight, but one just as joyous and carefree as the girl's. With both Trainers smiling as brightly as possible, they pulled Pokeballs from their respective belts and their battle, the final battle Lucas would face in the Sinnoh League, began.

Dawn sent out her Staraptor while Lucas summoned Sparky. The two Trainers complemented each others' Pokemon and called out commands, laughing and cheering as each round of battle resulted in spectacular results. Dawn would voice her sympathy when one of her Pokemon would knock out one of Lucas' and the teen would praise his opponent's abilities. Then the teen would pull off an amazing strategy which made the girl cheer just as loudly at the crowd. Time seemed irrelevant now, the length of the battle no longer a pressing concern. As the two exchanged attacks, jokes, and friendly banter, the teen was almost sure his own Pokemon didn't seem as tired as they had earlier as the pressure of winning seemed to fade away.

The first round went to Sparky as he knocked out the flying-type but Dawn came back with a rock move known by her Torterra. Jaws took out the Torterra and Dawn's Infernape, but was then knocked out by her Empoleon. The Empeleon fell to Franky and Franky lost to Dawn's Snorlax. The tough Snorlax also took out Donna before its Rest attack was taken advantage of by Haunter and her Dream Eater attack. Dawn was now down to her final Pokemon. Though this battle was fun for both of them, the two Trainers still put all their heart into winning. The girl's final Pokemon was a Lopunny, a creature that seemed invariably tied to Lucas' destiny. A Lopunny was one of the main monsters his first crush in Sinnoh, Ashley, used. He endured many hardships and tests of personal introspection related to the hatching, raising, and evolution of his own Pokemon Stella. Though Stella had not been selected for this battle, Lucas knew the normal-type, as well as his other Pokemon waiting in the PC Storage System, would be waiting anxiously to discover whether or not their Trainer was victorious. Like many other Lopunny he had encountered, Dawn's Pokemon was also well trained. Through some surprise attacks it defeated his Haunter, bringing both Trainers down to their final Pokemon.

This round would be the determining encounter, the sudden-death, winner-take-all battle that would declare the Champion. Lucas felt immense confidence in the result of this battle. Though this was the most fun battle he had had in a long time, he knew it was coming to an end. Poetically his final Pokemon would his first one, the tiny Eevee Lucas stumbled upon in the woods of the Eterna Forest. "Go Gizmo!" Lucas called out with a heave of the Pokeball.

"Lopunny! Hi Jump Kick!"

"Gizmo, Dig!"

"Lopunny, Thunderpunch!"

"Gizmo, use Return!" Once again the small Pokemon used the attack that became more powerful the more the Pokemon loved its Trainer. Few people had bonds as strong as the one between tattooed teen from Cherrygrove and the small, easily overlooked normal-type, making few Pokemon attacks stronger than Gizmo's Return attack. With the last of the small creature's strength, Gizmo charged his opponent with an aura of sheer force and energy. The two Pokemon collided, the taller, rabbit-like monster sent flying across the massive arena, ending the battle between the friendly opponents. Dawn ran to her Pokemon's side and comforted the unconscious creature. Lucas scooped up the worn Eevee into his arms and trotted over the little girl's side to check on her normal-type's status. "Your Lopunny okay?"

"Yeah, she's going to be just fine. That was an amazing Pokemon battle. It was just like what everybody said it would be. I've been hearing about you for a while and I really hoped you'd get this far so I could finally battle you. The guy with the Eevee who helped get rid of Cosmic in Sinnoh. The Trainer everyone said cared so much about his Pokemon. I can't remember the last time I had so much fun," Dawn was now giving Lucas the biggest smile he had ever seen anybody have.

"I had a lot of fun, too. You're a great Trainer and I hope we battle again some time. I seem to only have two modes with people. After a battle they either want to be my friend or ring my neck. I hope with you it's the first one," Lucas replied.

"It's definitely the first one. But when we battle again I'll want the Championship back," Dawn giggled. Suddenly the reality of the situation hit Lucas like a blow to the head. The roaring noise came back all around him and he noticed a flashing above him. The sheer joy of the battle against Dawn made the Trainer temporarily forget exactly what he had come for. Dawn wasn't just a fun opponent and a cute little girl, she was also the Champion of Sinnoh and he had just defeated her. The entire arena was now screaming his name in unison. Booming cries of 'Lucas! Lucas!' roared in rhythm with the flickering of pictures of his team on giant screens all around the arena. Pictures of Franky, Donna, Jaws, Sparky, Haunter and Gizmo from their triumphs from the five previous matches all flashed around him, entering their data into the Hall of Fame.

The various pictures blipped over and over again until the slide show stopped on a single image: the live feed of Lucas standing in the middle of the arena with Gizmo in his arms with the caption 'Champion' emblazoned in bright yellow underneath. The teen could feel his knees start to buckle as his emotions threatened to overwhelm him. By defeating Dawn, Lucas had become the Champion of Sinnoh. He had done it, the first leg of his Journey was now over, and he had succeeded. His chest swelled with pride for his Pokemon as well as for himself. The younger brother of John from Cherrygrove, the boy his parents, teachers—and even himself—had accepted as the inferior strength and intellect of his revered sibling, only good for getting into trouble and disappointing his family, had become the most powerful Trainer in the Sinnoh League.

"Well done, Lucas," a familiar voice called out across the deafeningly loud arena. Lucas looked to see Professor Oak approaching him with his familiar, friendly smile and his arms behind his back. The teen was still too overwhelmed to speak to his idol, and the only man who was willing to believe in a delinquent even his own family had given up on. "I know it's been a while since we've seen each other, but I'm glad we're meeting again under these circumstances. I told you when I first met you I recognize talent. And I was right. I knew you'd eventually get here, which is why I asked the League to give me the honor of presenting this to you,"

The Pokemon Professor brought his hands in front of his body, revealing the large, velvet-covered box he had kept hidden behind his body. The older man snapped the box open, showing a large gold-colored badge, twice as large as the badges presented by Pokemon Gyms. The badge was in the shape of a shield like many police officers, with two olive branches crossed beneath a large star. Above the star was the round crest of the Sinnoh League, two dragon-like Pokemon seemingly locked in battle, interlocking with a Pokeball at its bottom edge. Over the top edge of the Pokeball, in raised letters in the same font as the caption on the live feed was the word 'Champion'. Even if, or more realistically, when, a better Trainer would defeat him, Lucas could keep this badge for the rest of his life, a permanent reminder of his success today. Tentatively, the teen boy with the red Mohawk and tattooed arms reached out for the badge in the professor's hands, fearing that as soon as he touched it the dream would end and he would awake in a bed in his brother's house. But that did not happen. The cool metal of the pin felt real in his hands. He showed the object to the exhausted Eevee who had up until that moment understood his Trainer's excitement but was far more comfortable relaxing in his arms. Upon seeing the Champion badge, Gizmo let out one of his chirp-like 'Vii' sounds which Lucas interpreted to be admiration. Looking once more to the crowds, the teen lifted the badge into the air, the arena once more erupting in cheers.

Lucas waited impatiently as the acne ridden man at the counter took his sweet time to make the two prints the teen had requested at the copy-and-shipping shop just outside the docks of Sunnyshore City. When the man was finished, he set the two pictures on the counter next to the two envelopes the Trainer had just purchased, as well as a pen and the crystal bell with the etched Happiny and the words 'Hearthome City' that Lucas had purchased several months earlier for his mother. The young man picked up the prints and examined their quality. They were two copies of the photograph taken for the Hall of Fame: Lucas standing beside the six Pokemon that had brought him the Championship, fully rested and excited after their much-earned stay at the Pokemon Center. Satisfied that they were worth paying for, the teen handed the man some bills, flipped over the first copy, clicked the pen and started writing.

"_Dear Mom and Dad,_

_I have something to tell you and I hope you won't be too mad when you read this. For the past few months, since you dropped me off at the ferry in Olivine, I've been traveling around Sinnoh as a Pokemon Trainer. I know I was supposed to be living with John and staying under the radar, and you're probably not going to be happy to know that I've been not listening to you, yet again. You should know I didn't sneak out or anything to do this. John knew about it and was okay with me leaving. I know he's been covering for me whenever you talk to him, but I hope you won't get mad at him for lying to you. It was probably the only nice thing he's done for me in years. _

_I'm writing to tell you something important: I'm sorry._

_I know for the past few years, my whole life really, I guess, I haven't been the kind of son you've wanted. I know I've caused you all sorts of grief and got into a lot of trouble. I've done a lot of things you aren't proud of. And every time, whatever it was I did or didn't do, you've always said that I should try to be more like John. But that really isn't something I can do. I know what I'm doing isn't what you wanted when you sent me over here, but I can't help being anything but me. But by doing what I'm doing now I'm hoping that being 'me' is something you guys can one day be proud of. So until that happens, I won't be coming back. Don't worry about me, I'll stay safe. I've got some great friends taking care of me now and you guys know I've always been able watch my own back. And Mom, thanks for that pocket money you gave me for the trip, it really helped. I've always loved you guys and I hope the next time you see me, it won't be with that disappointed look you always seem to give me. _

_This is just something I have to do._

_Your other son,_

_Lucas,"_

With the letter to his parents finished, he grabbed the second print and wrote another letter on the back.

"_Dear John,_

_I'm now the Champion of Sinnoh. So screw you._

_Lucas."_

With his messages finished he put the photos in the envelopes, with the bell in with the letter to his parents, and had the man behind the counter send them out. With his final chore done, Lucas ran for the docks, hearing his ship blast its final warning horn as it got ready for its departure. With Gizmo clinging to his usual place on the teen's shoulder, his restocked duffel slamming gently against his back and his Pokeballs gleaming on his belt, the young man scrambled to the ramp with the rest of the last-minute passengers with the ticket clutched in his hand. This was the last boat of the day that was headed for his next destination, the Hoenn Region. Now safely aboard, he found a good place to stand and readied himself for the trip. As the ferry pulled away from Sunnyshore City Lucas looked back on the Sinnoh Region for the final time. It would probably be at least a year, if not longer, before he would return to this place.

As the landmass became smaller and smaller as the vessel pulled away, the tattooed Trainer was filled with a mix of emotions. Sinnoh was the land where rediscovered his dream of being a Pokemon Trainer, and was the place where many of the firsts of his Journey took place: his first Pokemon, his first battles, his first Championship. Though in the span of his still short life he had only spent a small amount of time in the region, it had begun to feel like home. After several minutes, Sinnoh was no longer in sight, so Lucas moved from the back of the ferry to the front to look ahead. Though the glory of becoming the Champion was still fresh, now was not the time to dwell on even the recent past. A new region and new challenges awaited him that he had to prepare for. After all, Lucas was only just getting started.


	44. Chapter 44 An Adventure in Hoenn

Pokemon Rebel prt.2

Chapter Forty-Four: An Adventure in Hoenn

Hoenn was a tropical paradise. An archipelago near the Equator in the warm south seas, the region was made up of a large island surrounded by dozens of smaller pieces of land that surrounded the mainland like planets orbit a star. The central island contained warm temperate forests that shifted into lush jungles and rocky cliffs. A desert blew its sandy winds in the north and the billowing smoke from Mount Chimney, the region's largest and most active volcano, was visible from any part of the region. The smoke was the first telltale sign to the eager vacationer that their cruise ship would be soon arriving to any of the area's amazing beaches. For many from around the world, the luxurious warm weather, magnificent views and beckoning activities meant Hoenn was one of the best places to vacation in the world. But for an entirely different kind of people, Hoenn's draw could be considered far more amazing than a simple destination for a holiday. Like many other island groups that called the Pacific Ocean home, Hoenn was home to Pokemon.

Pokemon, the remarkable creatures with mysterious powers. No one quite knew where they came from, or how long they had been there, but for regions like Kanto, Sinnoh and Hoenn these creatures had affected the economy, culture, government and lifestyle of every citizen lucky to call these areas home. For those who had the knowledge, the strength and the heart, had the power to capture and tame these creatures for themselves. While many kept Pokemon as pets and companions, people, known as Trainers would brave the wilderness and the elements to seek out the most powerful of these creatures and challenge each other on the field of battle. The most honored and respected of these Trainers were the Champions. People would travel across the regions, going from city to city to collect badges from certified Pokemon Gyms, face the toughest Trainers known the Elite Four and defeat the current Champion to claim the honor. For most, the glory of even facing, let alone defeating, one Champion would be enough for a lifetime. But for some, one Championship title was only the beginning.

The cries of real seagulls mixed with the caws of the water-and-flying type Pokemon called Wingull as a tiny ferry glided through the jewel-toned waters as it approached Hoenn. Leaned over the railing on the front of the small ship was a young man taking in the sights and sounds of the approaching land. The warm sea winds blew through his loosely gelled, fire-engine red Mohawk and gently shifted the few strands of long black hair that crowned the edge of his otherwise closely shaven scalp. He had a long square face with a stubborn, clenched jaw, a wide mouth with stainless steel hoops at either corner and a short, flat nose. His brown eyes could easily shift from gentle and caring to grim and hard at any moment and were framed with thick, brown eyebrows pierced with at least half a dozen holes apiece, and filled with more hoops and bars like his mouth. His ears were framed with even more piercings, finished with half-inch plugs in his lobes. His bare arms, tanned from travel, bore two sets of black tattoos. His left arm had stylized a Pokeball, Great Ball, Ultra Ball and Masterball linked together with bold calligraphy lines. His right arm was home to a frozen battle between a skeletized Aerodactyl and Kabutops, two Pokemon long since thought extinct. He was a fairly small young man, but his deceptive stature masked his fighter's body: lean, wiry muscles on his legs and arms and a short, dense torso like a boxer. To complete his intimidating image he wore a white t-shirt with the sleeves ripped off under a military style vest with lots of pockets, several belts, baggy pants and shiny black, steel-toed boots that he crossed at the ankles as he watched the bobbing horizon.

At first glance to anyone who would pass by, the young man looked like a troublemaker, and had they had that thought a year ago, their assumption would be completely correct. This boy had been a gang member, spending most of his free time defacing property, harassing ordinary citizens and getting into vicious street brawls. He had spent two stints in juvenile hall with a third possible term in his future had his parents not sent him to live with his older brother. But if anyone took a second glance, they would notice that as the teen boy slipped potato chips from the plastic and foil bag in hand to his mouth, they would have seen that every few chips he would offer to the small animal on his shoulder. The creature on his shoulder was an Eevee, a particularly rare kind of Pokemon that had the power to evolve into over half a dozen other creatures. This Eevee, however, could not.

It was because of this creature and its lack of its inherent ability that the tough-looking boy with intimidating clothing and features transformed from a juvenile delinquent with a grim future into the Champion of Sinnoh. When the boy, Lucas, was young, his entire life's goal was to become a Pokemon Trainer, a dream dashed by his older brother John. John had gotten the lion's share of talent and attention from his family and community, leaving Lucas in his shadow. But on John's tenth birthday he had claimed the only love his little brother had and became multi-region Pokemon Champion, seemingly dooming his younger sibling to be the failure forever. In response Lucas had become as unlike his glory-hound brother as he could, turning to a life of crime and hopelessness until his behavior forced his parents to outsource their problem to his sibling. On the way to John's Sinnoh home, Lucas had discovered a dying Eevee, abandoned by his original Trainer because he could not evolve. With this faithful meeting Lucas' life was transformed.

With the urging of Pokemon expert Professor Oak, the teen reclaimed his dream to be a Trainer and made a promise to his brother to escape his ghost by becoming a more accomplished Champion than John ever was. Over the months Lucas met this goal by traversing Sinnoh, collecting a team of Pokemon whose loyalty and love never wavered, and gained admiration and respect from the Gym Leaders and Trainers he defeated. And in time the Sinnoh Championship was his. Now he was on his way to Hoenn to claim his next Championship title and keep the promise he made to his brother: to gain four Championships from the four Pokemon League regions and return to Sinnoh to defeat his brother in battle with the Eevee that he discovered sick in the woods. During the several day journey on the ferry from Sinnoh to Hoenn, Lucas had celebrated his seventeenth birthday. It was a quiet affair with no calls or messages, and the only party was splitting a pack of vending machine donuts with his Pokemon Team. For the boy, it felt like the best birthday he had ever had.

The horn of the ferry blew three times, announcing that the ship would soon be pulling into the harbor of Slateport City. Lucas wadded up the now empty chip bag and tossed it into a nearby garbage can before picking up the army-green duffel bag he had leaned against a cabin wall and shuffled towards the other passengers that readied themselves to leave the ship. He gathered in the line of fidgety Trainers and tourists, antsy from a combination of cabin fever and excitement from arriving as the familiar mechanics of a port city came into view. The main city and its resources were still several hundred feet away, even with the ferry now fully pulled into its dock. Trade ships and cruise liners buzzed with activity and the business of loading and unloading their cargo. Also visible from the dock was a giant, luxurious beach—the kind that made Hoenn as popular as it was. When one of the crew members lifted the rope and told the passengers to watch their step as they set foot on the dock, the jittery passengers stampeded forward like horses at the starting gate of a race. Lucas stayed on the docks with a few others as most headed towards the city or the beach to begin their trips of non-stop fun and excitement.

The trip from Sinnoh to Hoenn had taken several days, but for the teen Trainer with the Eevee, his journey had just begun. Slateport was only a pit stop for the young man's final destination. That suited Lucas just fine. On his Journey, the teen learned the enjoy the unpredictability and zen-like calms that came with traveling. Lucas waited silently with the few other stragglers of the ferry as they waited for a second ferry that would take these like-minded individuals to take them to their next stop towards their final goal: Petalburg City before heading on foot to Littleroot Town.

After Lucas had defeated the Sinnoh Champion, Dawn, a young but extremely talented Trainer whose love and wonder for Pokemon matched the teen's, he had a lunch with his mentor and sponsor, Professor Oak. The teen was grateful for the meeting not only as a way to avoid the overwhelming interviews and conferences with the excited press, but it gave him a chance to sit down and catch up with the first person to believe in him since he was a small child. During their meal the professor analyzed Lucas' Pokedex and listened to the boy's adventures about getting his badges and catching his Pokemon. And afterward he explained what Lucas would need to do to get his next Championship. In order for Lucas to legally start catching Pokemon and compete for Gym Badges he would first need to register for the Hoenn League by getting his Trainer ID updated by a certain League representative. The League representative that the teen needed to see was Professor Oak's old acquaintance, Professor Birch. Like Oak, Birch was a Pokemon researcher, one who specialized and investigated Pokemon evolution and the effect environment had on Pokemon development and variation. And like most professors, the researcher preferred to have his lab in a small town away from the distraction and bustle of a large city. And so to get to Professor Birch and register for the League, Lucas would have to travel Littleroot Town.

Additionally Professor Oak talked about his curiosity towards one of the teen's Pokemon: Sparky, a dippy, happy-go-lucky Rotom that while obedient, preferred exploring to fighting. After the teen had caught it in an abandoned mansion, the professor suspected that Lucas' Rotom was the first Rotom ever created. And as a favor the older man asked the Trainer if he would leave the Pokemon with him while he was exploring in Hoenn so that the professor could study it. Though at first the teen was reluctant to leave behind a valuable member of his team that had been one of his first Pokemon, it eventually inspired him to do something. When he would be exploring Hoenn, he would use a new team of Pokemon that he wasn't as close to, and try to use more of the local Pokemon to fight towards his next Championship.

The second ferry finally arrived and the Trainers packed on board to head to Petalburg City. This second trip was much shorter than the several day trek from Sinnoh, and within fifteen minutes the boat arrived, but during that time Lucas got to appreciate his new environment. Hoenn was much more water-based than Sinnoh. Aside from the few streams and the three grand lakes, bodies of water were few and far between in the mountainous region. But travel in Hoenn seemed largely tied to rivers, streams and the ocean than ran between the islands. The teen would end up using Surf far more often in this area than he had before. Experience had taught the teen with the Eevee that paying attention and learning as much about an area and its culture was vital to Pokemon training. Lucas had known almost nothing about Sinnoh and its Leaders and time after time it had put him in a great disadvantage. He avoided making the same mistakes twice, so before leaving Petalburg City to head to Oldale and then Littleroot, the teen bought a guide about the region.

The rest of the trip was largely uneventful as Lucas set his mind on the business of getting registered. Oldale was tiny and nondescript with no shops, businesses or resources that could make it stand out. The only two things that captured his attention were the prickling, increasing humidity as he headed further and further away from the shore and deeper into the lush forests, as well as the warning fliers that were posted on almost every building and sign board from Petalburg to Littleroot. Lucas was sure to read the fliers right away. When he had ignored previous similar postings back in Oreburg City, he had ended up being falsely arrested for 'looking suspicious'. Luckily the posters described an assailant he couldn't possibly be mistaken for, the fliers were warning residents of a roving gang of Pokemon called Poochyena that had been attacking people.

Finally the teen Trainer arrived at his destination of Littleroot Town. Like Sandgem Town, where Sinnoh expert Professor Rowan had his lab, Littleroot was a tiny village with only a few houses. The burg was so small it didn't even have a Pokemon Center. The lab was easy to spot as it was the biggest building in town, and after the long trip and seeing all the potential for catching Pokemon, Lucas was glad to finally arrive so that he could officially start the next leg of his adventure. Like Rowan's lab, the Littleroot facility was unlocked and bustling with activity. Even though the two labs were largely identical in their organized division of lab, observation and research departments, the former delinquent still was in awe of anyone who could break down and decipher the mysteries of nature and the universe and still found the layout fascinating. The Trainer was mostly ignored as the assistants busily did their work. Lucas did his best not to disturb them, and headed straight for Professor Birch's office, marked at the end of the hall.

The teen knocked several times on the door with no answer. Based off of his experience with previous researchers and their often spacey ways, Lucas opened the door to look inside. No one was around the chaotic room with its stacks of disheveled papers, open books and randomly scattered pens. Upon seeing the workspace the Trainer started to wonder what kind of man Birch was. As Lucas turned around to look for someone to talk to, an assistant with a box of files passed him and noted the confusion on his face.

The man shifted his box to get a better grip and called out to the lost-looking visitor, "If you're looking for the Prof he's not here. He left for a field experiment this morning and hasn't been back since,"

"You got any idea when he'll be back?" the teen asked, relieved to have found assistance so quickly.

The man in the lab coat responded with a jovial shrug, "Your guess is as good as mine. Professor Birch is kind of a free spirit. It isn't very easy to schedule anything with him or make any kind of concrete plans. If you're in a hurry your best bet is to just go after him rather than waiting here. He went up Route 103, that's just a little north of Oldale Town. I'm sure you'll find him still there,"

"Uh, I just came from there," Lucas sighed, "But thanks for the info, I'll go find him,"

"Good luck," the man said as his shifted his heavy box a final time and walked away.

Though it was inconvenient to backtrack from a town he had just come from, the distance back wasn't far. Even as exhausted as the Trainer was becoming, he just couldn't contain his excitement of starting the new league any longer. Route 103 proved to be a small road that ended with a river that split between one half of the route and the other side where Lucas could see a cave. At first the teen with the Eevee thought he had missed the professor, or that he was further down the path and across the river already, but just as he was about to summon a Pokemon to go on the water after him, Lucas heard vicious snarling and barking coming from a small grove of trees.

The teen ran over to see dozens of small, canine-like Pokemon with black fur all surrounding a single tree. In the tree Lucas saw a heavy-set man with brown hair, a short beard, cargo pants and a lab coat clinging to dear life on one of the higher branches. Some of the small Pokemon tried to jump up and snap at the man's dangling legs while others curiously sniffed a rucksack that lied limply at the foot of the tree. The man had a concentrated look as he was obviously trying to figure out a way of his situation when he noticed the tattooed teen with the Eevee on his shoulder. As soon as he spotted the boy he started smiling and waving frantically as he called out to Lucas, "Hi there! I'm Professor Birch! It looks like you're a Trainer, so do you mind helping me out?"


	45. Chapter 45 The Poochyena Gang

Chapter Forty-Five: The Poochyena Gang.

At first Lucas didn't react to the man's request. After a several day trip from Sinnoh to Hoenn, the teen had arrived in Littleroot Town to speak with Professor Birch so he could get registered with the Pokemon League and legally start training in the region. After talking with an assistant, Lucas had learned that the professor had gone out on a field experiment. In a hurry to start the next part of his adventure, the teen went after the man. Now he stood stunned as he found the so-called 'Pokemon expert' treed by a group of Pokemon like a chased cat.

The man called out again, "Hi there, excuse me! I've been stuck here for hours, could you please help?"

At the repetition of the request, Lucas finally went into action. He pulled out his Pokedex to examine exactly what he was up against. According to the machine these Pokemon were Poochyena. Lucas had remembered the warning fliers posted all along the way from Petalburg to Littleroot and realized these must have been the creatures the posters had described. The Pokedex also pointed out that the majority of the dark-type were actually incredibly low level. These creatures had clearly ganged up together in the interest of strength in numbers. What Lucas couldn't understand is why these Pokemon were attacking people like this in the first place. But the answer would have to wait. Once the Trainer knew what he was fighting he commanded Gizmo to hop into battle. The difference between the Eevee's level and the Poochyena was massive, so Lucas had to be careful how he would attack. It was not in his interest to harm the Pokemon, simply to scare them off. The teen commanded the small normal-type to use his Shadowball attack. The ghost move would be largely ineffective against the dark-types but would be enough to intimidate the roving gang.

Lucas was right. As soon as the Eevee released the ball of sparking black energy in the largest concentration of Poochyena the Pokemon all scattered. All, except one. A single Poochyena stood his ground, barking and snarling at Lucas and Gizmo with all its might and power.

"You must be the leader," Lucas said aloud, "You're a tough little bastard but I'm giving you fair warning. I can be just as much of a bastard as you are, if I have to. Gizmo, get ready to attack again,"

Though the leader Poochyena was tough, it wasn't stupid. As the Eevee got ready to launch its next assault the Poochyena gave one final growl and turned tail to disappear into the bushes after its posse. Lucas had to shake his head and smile. Though the Pokemon was unnecessarily vicious, he had to admire its guts. In a small way the Pokemon reminded him of himself. With the danger over he returned his attention to the man in the tree.

"You alright?" Lucas called out.

With a surprisingly athletic move, the professor pulled himself up onto a branch above where he was sitting and used it to swing to the ground with a strong thump. He picked up the abandoned rucksack and dusted off the dirt and twigs that had accumulated on it. He then walked over to the Trainer and stretched himself out, "Yeah, I'm fine. Thanks a ton. I had come out here to investigate and take care of this Poochyena problem but they caught me off guard. I dropped the bag with my Pokemon in it and got treed before I could do anything about it. I've been up there since pretty much this morning,"

Upon closer inspection Lucas realized that even as far as scientists go Professor Birch was an oddball, and his erratic office was only the beginning. From a distance the man seemed stocky and overweight, up close the teen could see the mass was almost pure muscle. Not only that, the man's arms, legs and face were weathered from constant sun exposure and the beard seemed more a dislike of shaving rather than as a deliberate statement. The Professor's build and cheery disposition seemed more appropriate for an outdoorsman than a trained academic. Only the sudden observation in his eyes suggested he was even remotely interested in science. Now closer to Lucas, the stocky man seemed to be studying him as much as the teen looked over the man.

Professor Birch beamed and suddenly smacked his fist against his other hand, "Wait a second! You're Lucas!"

The teen cocked his head slightly in confusion as Gizmo ran back to his usual spot on his Trainer's shoulder, "Yeah, that's right. How did you know?"

"Professor Oak called me a few days ago to let me know you'd be arriving to my neck of the woods to get your teeth into the Hoenn League. He told me to watch out for a kid a mohawk and an Eevee. You fit the bill," the professor let out a hardy laugh.

Lucas had to smile. It seemed yet again his mentor was watching out for him. He'd have to message the man once he got the chance. Together the two men headed back to the Littleroot Lab to take care of the teen's business. When they finally returned the Pokemon expert haphazardly tossed his sack onto a pile of papers that collapsed into a messy pile on a desk. Professor Birch then shoved another pile off of his keyboard onto the floor, oblivious or simply indifferent to the documents getting caught in the wheels of his chair. Once the computer was all booted up, Lucas handed his Trainer ID to the scientist. When Lucas had first gotten the card from Professor Oak in Eterna City the super thin, computerized card was a red color, indicating that he was just a novice. Now the card was a dark blue color with the words 'Champion' listed as the rank as well as his total funds and Pokemon collection listed as well.

The scientist hummed as he entered the data and finished the registry by swiping the card through a machine right next to the computer's tower. Done, he held the card between two fingers and gestured it back towards Lucas, "Bingo-bango, you're now legal. You can now battle anyone in the Hoenn Region or catch any Pokemon. Speaking of which, since you're here I want to check up your Pokedex,"

"Oh, sure, of course," the teen replaced the card in the vest pocket over his heart and exchanged it with the Pokemon cataloging device.

The professor looked over the item, "So this is the new model. Pretty snazzy. And it looks like you're not doing too badly with catching Pokemon. It looks like you could do with evolving more of the Pokemon you already have. Hoenn doesn't have the same kind of variety that Sinnoh has in terms of land and air Pokemon, but the water's jumping with all sorts of species. Get ready to spend a lot of time fishing, surfing and diving,"

"Diving?" Lucas replied in surprise.

"Yup, Hoenn has just as much going on under the surface as above. You'll need to get the badge from Mossdeep before you'll be able to use the move on your Pokemon, but some cities you can't even get to without it," the professor explained, "Oh yeah, and before I forget lemme run you by some of the rules and things of training in Hoenn. Most of the rules between Sinnoh and Hoenn are the same, but you should remember this stuff: you can't pick berries unless replant some of the fruit you harvest. Some of the berries species are really rare so it's important to keep the population up. Another thing is tourism is extremely important in Hoenn. So make sure you don't bother anyone except Trainers unless you see a tourist about to do something stupid. Other than that you should be all set. Have fun on the road, get lots of Pokemon and if you run into my son while training, tell him I said 'hi,'" With this final comment Professor Birch picked his rucksack again and started heading out.

"Oh hey, where are you going?" Lucas called after the man, somewhat in shock that his orientation of this new area was so short.

"I need to go back out and do something about those Poochyena," Professor Birch replied but did not stop walking.

Lucas trotted back after him, "Oh yeah, I was meaning to ask about that. What's up with those Pokemon?"

"As a scientist I have a few working hypotheses, but between you and me I'm honestly not sure. Poochyena aren't the most friendly Pokemon to begin with, and they'll attack anyone who comes into their territory, but these Pokemon are acting very strangely. Normally they only run in packs of five or six. This gang I've counted with at least fifteen members. And they never, ever come into the city, but these guys have run down the main street of Oldale and have attacked people. They've been around for a few months. Normally you don't have to worry about these kind of weird shifts in behaviors because sooner or later a Trainer will drive them off, but problem with Oldale and Littleroot is that strong Trainers usually don't come within miles of here since there aren't any Gyms or rare Pokemon while the rookies couldn't possibly handle a pack that big with their starters. So it's up to me to sort this mess out before a person or Pokemon gets seriously hurt,"

"So what's the plan?"

The professor scratched at his scruffy beard, "Well, I guess my only option was what I was originally trying to do before I got sucker-punched by the Poochyena ambush. That's to knock them all out and hope that will scare them all off,"

A knot formed in the teen's stomach. Even though what the Poochyena were doing was dangerous and destructive to the local townspeople, it seemed wrong to injure so many Pokemon just to get them to stop, "Is that the only way?"

"Only plan _I_ got," the professor admitted.

"You said a strong Trainer should be able to do something right? Well, I'm a freaking Champion, why I don't stop the Poochyena?" Lucas proposed.

"Hey kid, if you're willing to do it that's fine by me. I'm a scientist, not a Trainer, I rather observe Pokemon than fight them. If you can figure out a less brutal way to stop the Poochyena from going after the people of Oldale and Littleroot then that'll make me one happy camper," Professor Birch beamed a huge smile of relief. He grabbed his rucksack again and lobbed it over to the younger man, "You might as well take one of these starters while you're at it. Something of a 'thank you' in advance. New region and all that,"

"Yeah, wow, thank you," Lucas replied awkwardly. The Hoenn starters considered of the first fire, water or grass-type starters that were the essential beginning tool of most Trainers. In this tropical area the starters were Torchic, Mudkip and Treeko. All three Pokemon had valuable assets and would be helpful in the fight, especially since the teen wanted to start with a new set of Pokemon and something closer to the Poochyena's level. After a moment's contemplation, the boy settled on the water-type Mudkip. Once he made his selection he handed the bag back to the professor.

"Alrighty then. Seems like you're all set up now. I'm going back into the field now to catch up on the work I missed from being in the tree all morning. If you need me, just contact me with your Pokevice and we'll meet back here at the lab," the professor slung the backpack onto his shoulder and immediately started heading back out the door, "Good luck Lucas, these towns are now counting on you,"

Lucas left shortly after Professor Birch and headed back to the Pokemon Center in Oldale Town to formulate his plan. With his new Mudkip Bruce, the teen went to the PC to get some more Pokemon for his team. While he'd have an opportunity to catch Pokemon later, for now he needed some of his older Pokemon to stand up to the Poochyena. The PC system was slow and hectic, and difficult to access. He remembered the Pokemon PC creators Bill and Bebe were working on an upgraded system to communicate better from region to region, and now having experienced the difficulties himself, hoped they would have the new system up and running soon. But after great difficulty he finally got some more Pokemon. He added to his team the Turtwig he had received from Professor Rowan in Sinnoh and the Beautifly he had trained earlier in his Journey. He decided with Gizmo's strength for backup, four Pokemon would be all he would need for now since he still wanted a way to stop the rogue Pokemon without having to harm all of them.

He got some food from the vending machines and looked up as much information on the Pokemon as possible. Poochyena were dark-types, a part of Lucas wanted to call his friend/rival Morgan to ask her opinion on the situation. Though the two Trainers butted heads and insulted each other constantly, Lucas couldn't deny that few people knew more about dark-types than the daughter of a former dark Gym. But before he could get her contact information from his Pokevice, a tablet-like device developed specifically for Trainers, he heard shouting and screaming outside the Pokemon Center.

Without any hesitation Lucas went to investigate what was going on. In the middle of the main road of town, the Poochyena gang were stampeding down chasing stray people who hadn't run inside, and tearing apart stands and displays in front of the few shops the small burg had. There were far more of the small dog-like Pokemon than what had trapped the Professor, Lucas' best estimates were upwards of twenty-five. His first instinct was to send out his own Pokemon and hash it out, but he held himself back as he realized that even if he scared them away without hurting them, they would only return again a short time afterward. As much as his personality was to fight first and ask questions later, he knew he had to think strategically if he wanted to stop these attacks for good with the smallest damage possible. First making sure no one was being harmed by the Pokemon, the teen Trainer stopped and watched exactly what the Poochyena were doing. While they weren't holding back as they chased citizens down the small streets and alleyways, Lucas soon noticed there was a method to their attacks, one he was surprised the professor hadn't observed during his planning. Their attack was split into two, most causing panic and chaos, while a second division grabbed food from the displays. In the middle of melee, a single Poochyena seemed to be barking orders. The tattooed young man immediately recognized this Pokemon as the same one who stood up to him and Gizmo. The leader.

That's when Lucas realized why could figure out what was going on when many seemed not to. During his early time with his gang in Cherrygrove, a rival gang would constantly pick fights on territory Lucas' gang largely controlled. While the best fighters tried to fend off the invaders, the other part of the gang would tag walls, destroy hide outs and steal things from Lucas' gang. All under the order of the leader. Then one day the leader was arrested for an unrelated crime and sent to a military school far away. Without the gang's leader, the members fell apart due to infighting and cowardice, and Lucas' gang once again took over the territory. He began to wonder a similar move would stop the Poochyena.

Lucas hid around a corner and called up Morgan, "Hey Morgan, it's Lucas. I need to ask you a question about something. Do you know anything about Poochyena?"

"I know _everything_ about Poochyena. If you're asking about them I assume you've made it to Hoenn. But as cute as they are Poochyena aren't exactly a tough Pokemon to deal with. Wait, you just became Champion didn't you? Don't tell me you've gone brain dead since I last saw you, because otherwise I don't understand why you're bothering me," Morgan's snide tone was just the way he remembered it, and he ground his teeth as he tried to keep his patience.

"Listen, I can handle Poochyena, Vampira, I just don't want to be responsible for having to knock out like forty of them to get them to not attack people,"

Morgan's tone shifted, "Wait, what now? Since when do Poochyena get in groups that big? And what do you mean attack people? Are there like teams of people going into the grass or something?"

"I don't have time to explain, I just need once question answered. Poochyena are a bit like real dogs or wolves, right? That means they all listen to a leader. If I knock out or catch the leader, do you think that would get the rest of the Poochyena to scatter?"

There was a moment of quiet as the dour expert thought, "...I think so. They'll be pretty disorganized for a while until a new leader fights its way up. But I don't think any Poochyena can command a pack that big. Be careful Rooster Boy, if what you're saying is true about the group being that large that lead Poochyena is going to be a lot to handle, even at lower levels,"

Lucas' lip twitched at the insulting nickname the girl gave him because of his Mohawk, "Hey, I'm the Champion, I know I can handle this. Later Witch-girl. And uh, thanks," Disconnected from Morgan and pushing the Pokevice back into one of his vest pockets, Lucas went to put his theory to the test.

Coming from back out of the alley, the teen ran for the leader. The Poochyena continued their raid, ripping apart packages and papers in the now abandoned streets of Oldale. The leader continued to direct his followers to gathering food but its attention was soon turned to the lone human running towards him. It was clear to both Lucas and the Pokemon that they had both recognized each other, and the tension that had appeared earlier in the day returned. With a decisive snarl, the Poochyena leader commanded some of the Poochyena to focus on the new threat. The teen responded in turn, summoning the Eevee on his shoulder to the heat of battle. Like the earlier fight the human ordered his charge to spook but not harm the Pokemon. And soon fear outweighed obedience as many of the Poochyena scattered back to the tall grasses and trees that surrounded the small city. Several braver Pokemon remained but as Lucas and the leader were now face to face to one and other, the main Poochyena barked a final command to the remaining few. They would not be needed in this fight, the leader would take on the human alone. The last few Pokemon looked to each other for confirmation before nodding and following their more timid brethren back into the woods.

"Just you and me now pal," Lucas said to the small dark-type, "I warned you before that I'm just as tough as you. And now you're about to find out just how much of a bastard I can be,"


	46. Chapter 46 The First Hoenn Gym

Chapter Forty-Six: The First Hoenn Gym

Lucas had come to Hoenn to gain another Championship, to prove to his smug older brother John that he would be even better a Trainer than the other sibling could ever dream of, and prove his worth to his family. The teen expected many new challenges and fights, but his first major fight would not be against a Gym Leader, a strong Trainer, or even a human at all. When the teen had come to Littleroot Town to register for the Hoenn League he had saved the resident researcher Professor Birch from a pack of Poochyena, a pack he had learned was reeking havoc not just on Trainers, but civilians right in the middle of their city. Now Lucas was about to put a stop to the attacks once and for all, not by attacking all the Pokemon responsible, but by cutting off the head of the serpent, stopping the tough and determined Poochyena who had become the pack's super aggressive leader.

Though what the Pokemon was doing was violent and terrible, a small part of him admired and sympathized with the creature. Poochyena were not large Pokemon, nor particularly strong. But this little creature had not only lead a gang far larger than anyone had seen before, but had also managed to strike fear into the people of two small towns. That kind of courage, conviction and determination was exactly the same thing that drove Lucas to fight back against anyone who dared to tell him he wasn't good enough or worthy enough to be where he was. This Poochyena was not a Pokemon he wanted to defeat, this was a Pokemon he wanted on his team.

The tattooed Trainer first summoned his newest Pokemon to the field of battle, the Mudkip he named Bruce that he received from Professor Birch. The two Pokemon were of similar level, but it was clear the Mudkip had never battled before. It obeyed his new Trainer without question, but its hesitant attacks and unsure moves soon became a liability. Next the Turtwig from Professor Rowan. It managed to make a dent in the Poochyena's strength, but the dark-type was nowhere near ready to give up. Lucas took a chance and brought out his higher powered Beautifly next. He was careful about his Pokemon's attacks, not wanting to risk knocking the little creature out. But even though the Beautifly managed to paralyze the Poochyena, the dog-like creature refused to give in. Recalling his Beautifly, Lucas brought out Gizmo to once again face the stubborn Pokemon.

"Listen lil' guy. I have a lot of respect for you. But I can't let you keep hurting people. If I wanted to, I could have had Gizmo knock you out in one attack. I'm not saying that to brag, I'm saying that as a warning. If you give up and let me catch you, you have a chance to make things right. If not, I'm going to have to stomp you to teach you a lesson. Strength isn't the end all to be all. And pushing people and things around isn't the way to show it. So what's it going to be?" Lucas kept his tone even and friendly, but his eyes glinted dangerously as he waited for the Pokemon to make a decision. The Poochyena was shaking and stiff from the paralysis, and its strength in the red zone from its earlier attacks. But it still stood its ground, determination in its eyes just as much as his human opponent. He let out a growl and kept right on staring. Taking a chance, the teen threw a Pokeball. The first one shook twice before exploding, the stubborn Pokemon refusing to back down. A second Pokeball lied in pieces around the Pokemon like the first. But finally a third Pokeball shook four times before clicking to victory.

Picking up the Pokeball, the Trainer called Professor Birch to inform him that the Poochyena situation was finally over. With the Pokemon's stubborn, fierce leader gone, the creatures would once again break into the smaller packs that were more normal and natural, and very unlikely to bother with humans in urban areas ever again. On his way back to Professor Birch's lab, Lucas summoned out his newest Pokemon. The Poochyena growled and snarled at his new Trainer, still not over the indignation of being captured. The tattooed teen smiled and crouched himself down to the Poochyena, "You're a little hellraiser, you know that? I think I'll call you Diablo," the Pokemon continued to eye Lucas angrily, "I gotta admit, there was another reason why I caught you instead of just defeating you. You remind me so much of myself it's scary. I was a tough little prick just like you back in the day. Constantly having to prove how tough I am, accepting any challenge no matter how dumb or dangerous it was, angry at everyone before I even knew them. But if you're like me than that means all you really ever wanted was someone to take you seriously and respect you. To not assume to worst or that you're unworthy. And I admire that, so I'd like us to be friends, that way we can make each other stronger,"

Lucas offered his hand out to the still growling dark-type and smiled. The Pokemon regarded the human hesitantly, still not sure what to make of his proposal and studying his hand suspiciously. The two continued to look at each other, a moment of tense quiet as the one waited for the other to make a move that would cement exactly what their relationship would be. In the end, Lucas was what brought the stalemate its close. Trusting his new Pokemon, the teen scratched behind Diablo's ears. The Poochyena jerked in surprise, the gentle stroke of affection being the last thing he expected from a human. As his new Trainer continued to stroke his fur and smile, Diablo drooped his ears in submission. Perhaps, the Pokemon thought, having a human Trainer wouldn't be so bad after all.

After the teen Trainer returned to Professor Birtch's lab, the athletic Pokemon Professor told him where to find the first gym. For most Trainers, their first battle in Hoenn would be in Rustburo City, home of the beginner's Gym, but since Lucas was already a Champion from another league, Gym order was far less important for his skill level. For him, he had the luxury of going to the closest Gym in neighboring Petalburg City, the medium-sized port town he had arrived at on the ferry. So with a final goodbye to the hardy scientist, Lucas headed back to the city he had come to earlier in the day.

Even with the Poochyena fiasco slowing him down, the day still had plenty of hours of light left, and after several days of being cooped up at sea, the teen was happy to push on for the challenge. Now that he had a valid license for Hoenn he could accomplish what he had set out to do. On the short roads back from Littleroot to Oldale to Petalburg Lucas moved quickly. He only stopped to catch a Tailow and a Zigzagoon and was unstopped by any Trainers.

Petalburg was small but peaceful, filled with the shops that the people of the smaller towns probably used when their tiny stores lacked in volume or variety. The Pokemon Gym and Center stood out against the houses and beautifully kept ponds bobbed gently as a sea breeze from the west blew through. A quick stop for supplies was all that diverted Lucas as he headed for the Gym.

In Sinnoh, Lucas was constantly at a disadvantage against his opponents since he knew nothing about the Leaders and strongest Trainers in the league. Now a Champion, the teen was determined not to make himself look foolish by repeating his mistakes. He took out the League Guide he had purchased before going to the professor's lab and looked at the sign in front of the large building. _May, the anything but Plain-Jane girl._ Flipping through the softcover book, the Trainer found the section for the Leader. According to the guide, Petalburg's Gym was a normal-type facility, with the current Leader the daughter of the former one. Lucas smiled as he closed the guide and stuffed it back into his bag. The book had also mentioned that Trainers typically needed four badges or more before considering fighting May but the tattooed teen wasn't concerned.

Normal-types were not Pokemon to be underestimated, after all, people dismissing Gizmo was what had lead the young man to most of his own victories, but the typing wasn't remarkably effective against any other types. Any well trained Pokemon at a sufficient level with a well thought out strategy could beat them, and fighting types could wipe the floor with any of them. With his new team of Diablo, Beautifly, Bruce, Turtwig, Taillow and Gizmo, the teen was confident this Gym would be no challenge, especially as a Champion.

Like many other Gyms that he encountered, Petalburg's Gym required a mental challenge before being able to face any of the Junior Trainers or the Leader. When Lucas stepped through the main doors, he was greeted by an empty room with two doors and a sign between them. The sign read, 'do you value wisdom or strength?' On the door to the right was painted with an owl, the door on the left had a sword. Lucas stopped before both of them and thought. Clearly whatever he answered would affect his ability to continue in the Gym.

"So what do you think Gizmo?" the Trainer asked his Pokemon. The Eevee looked at both symbols and cocked his head. As intelligent as Pokemon could be, certain human concepts were beyond their understanding, "Yeah, I really don't get it either. On one hand, being strong may seem good, I've taken out guys twice my size and weight just because they were dumb as rocks. But on the other hand wisdom is a kind of strength, isn't it? Well, if I get it wrong I'll just start the challenge again, right?"

The Pokemon chirped in reply. Holding his breath, Lucas grabbed the handle for the sword marked door and barged through. On the other side was a teen boy, the first of the Junior Trainers. He stepped forward and addressed his challenger, "Welcome to the Petalburg City Gym, you have chosen the door of 'strength'. If you value strength, prove to me how strong you are,"

The battle was short but vicious and Lucas' experience was all that gained him his victory. Though his opponent's attacks weren't very strong, their high defense and their defensive moves meant Lucas and his Pokemon had to use their strongest abilities to make a dent. Defense Curls and other defense boosting moves made normally weak Zizagoons, Slakoths and Whismurs practically walls.

Defeating the first Trainer meant access to a second set of doors. This time sign read, 'Which is more important, the heart or the mind?' The door to the left marked with a heart, the door to the right marked with a book. Lucas' instinct was to immediately go for the door marked with the heart, as it was his heart and not his mind that most often made his best decisions. But after the first battle he realized his decision didn't just mean an introspection of his philosophies, but would affect exactly what he would have to do in battle. Picking strength previously meant a focus on attacks, but what would heart and mind represent in a Pokemon battle? The teen grimaced. He was so certain he would do so well in Hoenn now that he was such an experienced Trainer, but it seemed he was still learning and in many ways still just as clueless as when he first started out. The tattooed Trainer decided relying on his instincts still made the most sense and with no more hesitation, pushed through the heart-marked door.

An elderly woman in plain, sensible clothing greeted him, "Welcome, young Trainer. You have chosen the door marked 'Heart', meaning you value instinct over intellect. Prove how good your instincts are by defeating me,"

Just like the first match, this battle tested Lucas' skill and talent to extremes. This room proved to focus on normal-types' flexibility. Each one of the old woman's Pokemon knew attacks outside their element. Thunderbolts, Psywaves and fighting moves kept Lucas on his feet. He had no time or chance to set up two-turn strategies, as they'd be countered with Protect and Roar moves. But Lucas' instincts were good, and despite the curve ball attacks his opponent kept throwing at him the Trainer countered every move. Though he stayed on the defensive, he didn't panic, and with patience and care the old woman's Linoone, Vigoroth and Spinda defeated, and the second victory was his.

Behind this woman was a third set of doors. One door was marked with a man with his arms outstretched, the other door had three people holding hands. The sign between these two doors read 'What is more important? The power of the individual, or the strength of the group?' Another difficult decision for the teen to make. But one that took far less time considering than the previous two doors. Lucas was now figuring out that regardless of what path he would choose in the Gym, each task and battle would be just as difficult. It really would be his own personality which would determine how he faced the Gym Leader. The teen relied heavily on his Pokemon. He counted on them at every move, trusting their loyalty to him to push through even the most difficult tasks, but in his heart, he had to push through the other door. The door marking the power of the individual.

As much as Lucas knew it was his Pokemon's teamwork that let him go this far, it was at the end, the strength and trust he put in himself that got him this far on his Journey. While he was slowly opening himself back up to people by making new friends and gaining the admiration of Pokemon Trainers and professors the world over, at the end of the day it was his own decisions and his own determination that pushed him forward. His own power got him this far, and it would continue to do so.

The third Trainer's battle was just as difficult as the other two fights. The final Trainer's strategies forced Lucas to only fight with one Pokemon at a time, preventing switching without consequence, and canceling out any attempts for the Pokemon on Lucas' team from helping one and other. The teen Trainer anticipated as much and was not discouraged. Like the other two battles before had, the young man used the bulk of his experience and his determination to eke out a third victory.

Behind this final Trainer only one door remained. There was no choice for this room. For behind that final door was the Petalburg Gym Leader.


	47. Chapter 47 Lucas vs May

Chapter 47: Lucas versus May

Normal-types were not to be underestimated. This was a fact Lucas had known for a long time. His Eevee Gizmo had been the trump card in many of his victories, all because his opponents had assumed the unevolved Pokemon posed no threat to larger, more varied Pokemon. He knew not to take these seemingly common creatures lightly, and his knowledge and experience of this information was practically all that kept him going through the tough battles of the Petalburg Gym. The Gym's challenge was a form of introspection, how the Trainers answered difficult questions by entering specifically marked doors determined what kind of battle and strategy the Trainer was forced to use. But despite the difficulty, Lucas had successfully defeated all three Trainers, and now the only obstacle between him and the Gym's Leader was a plainly marked door.

Going through the door, the tattooed Trainer was greeted with a room larger than the others, but just as plainly and simply decorated. White-washed walls and and a wood floor hid nothing, and across the arena stood his next and final opponent: the Gym Leader May. May was a young woman about Lucas' age with short brown hair, longer at the front and covered with a tied handkerchief, with green eyes and dressed in colorful, athletic-looking clothing. She seemed friendly and cheerful but her eyes shone with experience and calculation. Only a total idiot would assume this girl would be a pushover. Seeing her opponent she began the rehearsed speech all Leaders gave their challengers, "Welcome to the Petalburg City Gym. I am May. After Journeying around Hoenn I inherited this Gym from my father Norman. Like him, I specialize in normal-type Pokemon. The most common type in the Pokemon world, normal-types are the definition of both adaptation and flexibility. They have few advantages, but just as few weaknesses. Based off of the doors you went through to get to me, you are a Trainer who values strength, not just physical prowess, but strength of the heart and the strength within themselves. Who is the Trainer who values these things?"

"My name is Lucas. I'm originally from Cherrygrove City in Johto and I've come to challenge the Hoenn league for a Championship, just like I did in Sinnoh. You are my first obstacle to this challenge, so I've come for a badge!" Lucas replied in turn. Pulling off a Pokeball from his belt the teen began the battle, "Go! Diablo!"

"Wait a second. You're a Champion from another League?" May said with some surprise.

With pride, Lucas pulled out the badge he received from Professor Oak after defeating Sinnoh's former Champion, Dawn. "That's right. I won this just a week ago,"

While May was obviously impressed, she also seemed somewhat concerned. Lucas and Diablo waited impatiently for the Leader to make her first move, but instead of throwing out her own Pokemon, she went to a panel on the wall and opened it. Inside was a second set of Pokeballs. She switched the ones she had on her belt with the ones from the wall before returning to her original position. Lucas shifted in his spot, a sense of unease about the situation growing. Finally May explained, "Champions who wish to challenge other Leagues are required to face a separate, advanced team of Pokemon. The Gym system is currently set up that the default difficulty is for beginning and aspiring Trainers. If Champions just faced the entry level Pokemon, they'd be able to breeze through multiple Leagues with almost no challenge. It'd be unfair, make sense?"

"Yeah, that makes total sense," Lucas conceded, but now that gnawing unease was getting worse.

"Go! Delcatty!" May announced as she finally threw the Pokeball into the arena. Before the feisty Poochyena appeared a slightly larger pink cat with wide black eyes. The young man finally understood what was causing his concern, and suddenly he felt completely and totally foolish again. The Pokemon the Leader had summoned was leveled in the mid 30s. With exception of Gizmo, the rest of his team hadn't even hit level 20 yet. Lucas was so sure he'd be ready for this League this time. Not only was he a Champion, he had taken great pains to not be caught off guard by researching this new region and his new opponents to avoid the mistakes he had made over and over again in Sinnoh. Instead, he had made a completely new mistake. He felt like a rookie all over again.

Not only that, if he went through the battle, the new team he put so much pride in putting together would get seriously hurt. And relying solely on Gizmo not only was poor strategy, it defeated the purpose of putting together a new team in the first place, "I don't think I can go through with this battle,"

May nodded her head, "I see what you mean. That Poochyena is really low level. That's why I was so surprised to learn you were a Champion. What happened to your old team? Why don't you just keep using them?"

"I have a lot of Pokemon," Lucas responded, "For a new league I wanted to give a new team of Pokemon a chance to be as great as my other guys. It only seemed fair. But I guess if I want to win the Hoenn League like I did Sinnoh, I'll just have to keep using them. I think we'll have to call this match off,"

May nodded again, "That's a smart decision, Lucas. But you have to realize since you threw down your Pokeball that means that this was an official Gym match. In order to end this fight you'll have to formally forfeit, including the loser's fee,"

The other Trainer let out a slow, controlled breath in resignation, "No, I understand that. But it's a small price to pay. Picking your battles and all that," the teen then called to his Poochyena, "C'mon Diablo, let's throw in the towel,"

Instead of trotting back to his Trainer's side, the small dark-type stood its ground, staring down the slightly larger Delcatty the Gym Leader still had on the field.

Lucas frowned and clapped his hands to get the Pokemon's attention, "Diablo, seriously, it's time to go. The fight's over," But the Pokemon refused to move. Instead it merely glanced back at his Trainer with a growl. Both Trainers looked at each other with some surprise. The tattooed teen had gotten eight badges from a Pokemon League, by all accounts, even the most powerful Pokemon were supposed to obey Lucas without question. But for some unknown reason, this low-level Poochyena refused to obey. The Trainer finally realized why his Pokemon was being so stubborn. It was the same reason why the Pokemon refused to back down even when it was paralyzed and on the verge of fainting. It could not back down from a fight, "Diablo, seriously. You don't have a chance against that Delcatty. Its level is far too high. If you fight that thing, you _will_ lose,"

Diablo continued to hold its ground, only letting out a bark to let his new Trainer know he had no intention of running away from an opponent. Lucas sighed over the Poochyena's behavior, but his annoyance turned to amusement and he couldn't help but smile. This Pokemon's personality was so like his own it bordered on terrifying. While Lucas would do anything to prevent his Pokemon from getting harmed, when it came to himself he had no qualms about throwing himself in the middle of a fight: pain, injury and consequence be damned. He knew he wouldn't like it much is someone dragged him out of a brawl, and while he didn't want to see Diablo get hurt, he also didn't want to crush his creature's pride, "I guess I won't be forfeiting after all. Looks like if you want me out of here you're going to have to defeat each and every one of my team,"

"If that's the final choice you're making, then I have no option than to respect it," While May could see the Trainer and his Pokemon's folly, she also had to admire their sheer determination. This boy had become a Champion for a reason, "Go Delcatty! Use Takedown!"

The pink feline creature rushed the small gray Poochyena at full force, but Diablo held his ground, waiting until the last second to rush out of the way, causing the much more powerful Pokemon to miss its mark. Now it was Lucas' turn to fight back, "Diablo! Tackle!"

Now the dark-type was completely obedient as it slammed his small body against his opponent. As his Trainer had expected, the damage the Poochyena had done was minimal, but the first round of attacks was over and it was the Delcatty that had been harmed. The brown-haired girl kept her business-like focus, "Delcatty, Takedown again!"

Once again the cat-like normal-type rushed the canid Pokemon, fully intent on knocking out the creature in one powerful blow, but like the last round the Delcatty had missed. Diablo waited his opponent out until the last second and dodged out of the charging Pokemon's way only to respond with his own Tackle attack. Another round with minor damage, but the damage was on the Leader's side instead of the Trainer's.

The Gym Leader switched tactics as the low-level Pokemon started to prove to be an unexpected nuisance, "Delcatty, use Sing this time!" Rather than a direct physical attack again, the normal-type sat down and began to use a hypnotic cry. The sound hurt Lucas' human ears, but this time it had the desired affect on Diablo as his eye-lids dropped and he fell to his side.

Lucas pulled out his Pokeball, "Diablo, return! Gizmo! Take the field!" Now that the battle was in full swing, the teen was taking it as seriously as he had any before. The fight may have started out as a mistake, but now the Trainer was looking at as just a challenge. When he fought against the Elite Four in Sinnoh, against the Trainer Cynthia he was offered a chance to forfeit when his team was was being run ragged. He had turned her down because he had trusted in his team had the power to go all the way, and he had put together his new team in Hoenn for the exact same reason. Lucas' strength may not have been in his intelligence, but in his adaptability and quick decision making. The Eevee leapt off his Trainer's shoulders and faced the Delcatty, "Gizmo, use Return!"

"Delcatty, Takedown one more time!" The two normal-types circled one and other, waiting for an opening. Finally the two just lunged at each other. This time the Delcatty's attack hit its mark, but took damage in the process. In response, the Eevee used his most powerful attack and sent the already injured feline flying across the Gym. May's first Pokemon was now defeated. Though she was concentrated on the battle, her expression was hard to read as to how she was feeling. She pulled the next Pokeball off her belt and set the fighter to the ring, "Go Wigglytuff! Use Bodyslam!"

"Gizmo return! Go Beautifly," Lucas used the cards he was dealt. Even though he hadn't intended for a miss-matched battle to take place at the Gym, he was going to use the opportunity to get his Pokemon stronger. The female Beautifly was a Pokemon the teen had originally caught in Sinnoh as a Wurmple. The loyal and beautiful Pokemon had proved an asset in his earliest Gym matches, and he thought the bug-type deserved a second chance on the team in Hoenn. As such, the creature was in the upper teens. Not enough to survive long against the high-level Wigglytuff, but enough to at least get off one or two attacks before having to be benched again, "Beautifly, use Silverwind!"

As Lucas expected the Bodyslam attack from the squishy pink bunny-eared beast did heavy damage to the insect, but the Silverwind managed to pull off a critical attack, doing a great deal more damage than either Trainer had expected. May continued the assault without hesitation, "Wigglytuff, use Bounce!"

"Poison Powder, Beautifly!" the Mohawk-bearing teen commanded. Despite the lower level, Beautifly managed to eke out its attack faster than the normal-type. Toxic scales landed on the pink Pokemon's body before it leapt into the air. When the Pokemon would come down its attack would knock out Lucas' creature, so he found the opportunity to switch out while he could, "Gizmo, I need you again!"

The Eevee jumped back into the fray just as the the pink blog careened into his fluffy body. The damage was significant though manageable, and the Wigglytuff was suffering from its poisoned state. May seemed unfazed by her Pokemon's suffering, and it seemed as though the Pokemon's state seemed to give her a boost of confidence, "Wigglytuff, Facade!"

Lucas' confusion over May's delight in her Pokemon's pain ended when he realized what she was so happy about. The Wigglytuff's attack seemed greatly amplified. It wasn't enough to knock Gizmo out, but the Eevee's health was still dangerously low. This round would have to end soon if Lucas had any hope of facing May's third and final Pokemon, "Gizmo, use Return again!"

Once again the powerful move pushed May's Pokemon to the brink, and with its additional poisoned state the pink creature collapsed at the end of the turn. This was it, May's last Pokemon. Lucas knew better than to start celebrating just yet. Leaders always saved their most powerful and most challenging Pokemon for last. It wouldn't be unusual for a final Pokemon to wipe out an entire Trainer's team, something Lucas himself had once had happen to him. May pulled the last ball on her belt and summoned the final beast to the field, "Go! Slaking!"

A giant hulk of a creature appeared on the field. Lucas would have had his heart in his throat if the Pokemon's expression wasn't so disinterested in its surroundings. Still, even if this Pokemon seemed to care less about battling than he thought was possible for a creature, his gut was telling him not to take the massive beast lightly, "Gizmo, return! Go Bruce!"

Lucas's original plan was to keep his new Mudkip out for one turn and then switch it immediately before the very low level Pokemon could get hurt. However, a different idea came to mind when the Gym Leader called out her attack, "Slaking, use Faint Attack!"

Much to his shock, the Pokemon completely ignored his Trainer. And May had given him an odd look when Diablo refused to back down when her own Pokemon clearly had no interest in obeying. At least Diablo's disobedience was eagerness to prove himself. This Slaking's problem appeared to be...laziness. The teen risked an attack, "Bruce! Use Bubble!"

"Slaking! Faint Attack!" May commanded again. This time, much to the teen's shock, the Slaking lurched up and slammed into the small, low-level water-type, sending the unfortunate creature flying across the Gym and slamming into a wall.

"What gives?" Lucas blurted in surprise. While the tattooed young man never pretended he was an expert in Pokemon, he thought he at least understood a great deal about what occurs during battle.

May was more than happy to explain the strange Pokemon's actions, "Slaking have an ability called Truant. Essentially they are one of few Pokemon on earth who even with the required badge level will disobey their Trainers. Slaking may not always listen to what I ask, but I don't need him to. His attack is so high all he has to do is land a hit once and even that level 52 Eevee is pretty much done for. I admire your heart Lucas, I really do, but it really was a mistake to face this team with those low-level Pokemon,"

Lucas knew the Leader was right. He had only one chance to survive the match, and that was to put all bets of Gizmo. No more swapping around. He had to finish it, "Gizmo, bring this battle home. Come on buddy, I know this is your specialty," the teen said to his Pokemon as the weakened Eevee entered the match for the final time. This battle would be in the strictest terms a gamble. He had a fifty-fifty shot that the Slaking would chose not to fight during each turn. Lucas hated to rely on chance versus skill, but as the old saying goes, it's better to be lucky than good, "Gizmo, Dig!"

"Slaking, Faint Attack!" The tiny creature dove underground as once again the Slaking chose to grace the participants with a show of his mighty skill, but the tiny fur ball managed to escape the behemoth's attack. May knew the Eevee's attack would hit first and altered her strategy, "Slaking, Counter!"

The teen held his breath and practically ripped out an earring he was playing with it so nervously. Gizmo popped out of the ground and despite his small size sent his opponent flying through the air. A Counter attack would end this battle now. Not only was Counter more powerful being the second attack in a turn, its fighting attribute meant it would be super effective against the Eevee. Add in Slaking's already high attack and Gizmo would even have a shot at full health. But whatever celestial force there was out there that occasionally threw Lucas a bone in his life was in full force that day. The Slaking gave a disinterested look to May, yawned and started to scratch itself. Gizmo had survived the round.

And the next one, and the next one. For whatever the reason, even with the beat down the Eevee kept dealing out to his opponent, the other normal-type either kept missing his attacks or simply didn't feel like fighting back. May was clearly growing frustrated with her Pokemon, but kept ordering the attacks. Lucas kept waiting for the shoe to drop, for the Slaking to finally wipe his poor Eevee out, but somehow his usual trump card worked out again. After four rounds the Slaking slumped over one final time, not out of laziness, but from defeat.

May afforded herself a whine of frustration and annoyance, "Ohhh! I hate when he does that. This Slaking used to belong to my father, but he gave him to me when I took over as Trainer after retiring from Champion. Even though I'm a former Champion and a second generation Leader, the silly thing still decides not to listen to me from time to time. But even still I suffered from a lot of bad luck during this match you're still a very skilled opponent. You were at a complete disadvantage, but you still managed to use your lower level Pokemon to fight back against me. I understand why you were able to become the Champion of Sinnoh. You won't be able to breeze through the Hoenn League, but after seeing what I saw today it wouldn't shock me if you do end up a two-league Champion,"

"It's funny," Lucas replied, now able to relax and act more friendly to his fellow Trainer, "This fight started because my Pokemon wouldn't obey and ended because yours wouldn't. It only goes to show that Pokemon Battling isn't just about stats or type-matchups,"

"You really proved though that your trust and value the strength and hearts of your Pokemon, just like the battle test before you came here proved. I clearly still have a lot to learn, even with all my experience. So with great pleasure I present to you the Hoenn League's Balance Badge, as well as the TM for the move Facade. Just like I used in battle, Facade becomes more powerful if your Pokemon gets hit by a status affecting move like poison or a burn," May pulled out the winnings from her belt pouches and handed them to her opponent.

Lucas scooped up his exhausted Eevee and grabbed his winnings from the Gym Leader. The teen studied the new badge carefully. Even though he had made a big mistake, he still managed to turn the battle around. All because he believed in his Pokemon. Though the start to the League seemed rocky, this match showed as long as he kept learning and trusting his Pokemon like he always has, the Hoenn League Championship would be his as well.


	48. Chapter 48: SilphDevon, Inc

Chapter 48: Silph/Devon, Inc.

Lucas couldn't stop looking at his new badge. Though this was technically his tenth earned badge, he was as proud of it as he if it was his first. The previous day's battle against the Petalburg City Gym had been tough. Unaware of the affect his status as Sinnoh Champion had, Lucas challenged the Gym Leader May with a team of lower level Pokemon that he had planned to train on his Journey across Hoenn. However, as a Champion, Lucas was required to face an upper level team all Gym Leaders were required to keep in case of an advanced challenge. But even with his much lower-level Pokemon, with the help of his first Pokemon Gizmo, and a little bit of luck, the teen defeated May.

There was no room for more badges in his old badge case, so after visiting the Pokemon Center to heal his deserving team, he went to the Pokemart to buy a new one. Even in the new case Lucas continued to stare at the badge, watching how the light played against its enameled surface. Finally finished indulging his pride, Lucas put the case away and pulled out his guidebook. After all, the single badge was worthless if his intentions were to become the League's new Champion, he would need the other seven in order to gain the right to face Hoenn's Elite Four. According to the book he had purchased in an attempt to better prepare himself for the new region, the next closest Gym was in Rustboro City, the third largest town in the League and home of the region's business center. While Hoenn largely relied on shipping and tourism, all the financial and commercial enterprises took place in Rustboro, including one of the head offices of Silph/Devon, Inc, the corporation largely responsible for the production of the tools and items every Trainer always used.

Leaving the store, Lucas put away the book and pulled one of his Pokeballs off of his belt. The other reason the teen was able to win was because of the determination of his newest Pokemon Diablo, a vicious Poochyena that previous to his capture was the leader of a gang that had terrorized the towns of Oldale and Littleroot. If it hadn't been for Diablo's unwillingness to walk away, Lucas would have forfeit his Gym Match and switched out his team to avoid harm to his weaker Pokemon. Diablo sat indecisively in front of his Trainer. Though the Pokemon was loyal, and for the most part, obedient, it was clear that the Poochyena still had trepidations about belonging to a human. Lucas bent down to the Pokemon's level and patted him on the head. The Pokemon tried very hard to pretend he didn't enjoy the affection, "I need to thank you, Diablo. You're still a little bit of a pain in the ass, but if you didn't hold your ground like you did, I probably would have forfeited for the first time in my life as a Trainer. I'd do it to protect you guys, but I sure as hell wouldn't like it. So thanks again lil guy,"

Between the human's praise in such a kind voice and the way the scratching behind his ear felt, Diablo felt his shield go down and he finally had to admit to himself that he liked Lucas. Though he had caused a lot of trouble as a wild Pokemon, the Trainer regarded him with nothing but kindness. And even after his disobedience in the Gym, Lucas didn't get angry. And right now he seemed grateful. The Poochyena didn't know too many humans before his capture, but the ones he did were always impatient and unfriendly. Lucas was clearly different. Special. While he initially he was only resigned to being a captive Pokemon, now Diablo saw it as an opportunity. He would follow this human to the ends of the earth.

Lucas let the Poochyena follow on foot as he headed north out of town. As he exited Petalburg he looked down from the low cliff path to the small beach below. Old retirees and Fisherman Trainers cast their lines into the lapping surf while stir-crazy mothers let their little ones run around as they enjoyed the sun of another day too beautiful for staying home and doing chores. The pleasant sea breeze once again blew through Lucas' hair and clothes. There was such an easygoing nature about the tropical region that the teen had to admire and adjusted his pace to enjoy his travels. After so many days on the boat, and then all the hectic activities from his first couple days of traveling in Hoenn it was nice to get back to pleasant familiarity of being on the road.

Past the sea cliff road lied Petalburg Woods, a small forest that was the only obstacle between Petalburg and Rustboro, and was small enough that even from the entry to the woods, the tall buildings of the larger city started to come into view. Lucas knew that while he was incredibly lucky with May, the next Gym Leader would not be as easy to defeat. He was still determined to use his new team of Pokemon to conquer the League, so he had to increase the intensity of his training. He crossed most of the woods before the end of the morning and had captured several new Pokemon including a Slakoth, Lotad and Seedot. In Sinnoh, towns and cities were spread very far apart, with the western and eastern regions separated by the massive Mt. Coronet, a huge, treacherous mountain visible almost everywhere in the region. By contrast, Hoenn was much, much smaller and by lunchtime, the teen Trainer had left the forest and was crossing the bridge into Rustboro.

The guidebook didn't do Rustboro City justice. Built at the beginning of the last century it mixed the last of the elegance of the 19th century with the industrial efficiency of the 20th. Like Hearthome City in Sinnoh, each building was carefully decorated with wrought iron fence work and ornate masonry. But while Hearthome was a cozy burg more interested in cafes and antiquing, Rustboro managed to blend its elegant beauty with the raw power of the corporate machine. Skyscrapers, though not as impressive as the much more modern cities in Kanto, still kissed the sky and forced onlookers to crane their heads up. Surprised by the speed in which he was traveling to the next Gym, Lucas decided he would spend his first day in Rustboro sightseeing.

The tattooed teen made a quick stop at the Pokemon Center to heal his team and plan his day. In addition to the old buildings full of history unto themselves, the large metropolis was home to the region's finest Pokemon School and also the Hoenn Region's commercial center. Many of the largest world corporations had offices in this city to try to appeal to the somewhat offbeat culture of the Pokemon World and was home to the original office of the world's leading Pokemon Product giants: Devon Corp.

Devon Corp in Rustboro City and Silph, Inc in Saffron City were responsible for producing every good a Pokemon Trainer would ever need. Pokeballs, Pokemon medicine, even the Pokedex were produced by both companies, and for years the corporations had a fierce but honorable rivalry. Silph produced the first version of the Pokedex, Devon created the net and dive balls. The Hoenn company came out with the PokeNavi, and less than two years later the Saffron-based corporation introduces the PokeGear. Then after years of competition, Steven Stone, the son of the previous CEO, upon his father's retirement shocked the financial and Pokemon worlds by announcing the two competitors were coming together to create the ultimate Pokemon company. Now the company was named Silph/Devon, Inc.

According to both the guidebook as well as a pamphlet from a rack in the Pokemon Center, the original Rustboro office was open to the public. The company offered tours of the office, demonstrations of how Pokemon products were made as well as detailed history of the technology responsible for allowing the people of the region to capture and train Pokemon. While all of that sounded fairly interesting to the pierced young man, it was another feature that captured the teen's attention. The pamphlet stated that the office of Silph/Devon had a lab that could bring Pokemon fossils to life. Lucas was fascinated by ancient Pokemon and their fossils. Seeing the exhibits at the Pewter City Museum as a boy was what inspired the Trainer to ink into his right arm the tattoo of a Kabutops fighting an Aerodactyl. While in Sinnoh, the teen had learned of the amazing technology, and after saving the life of a Gym Leader, was given a Pokemon fossil that would allow him to bring a Cranidos back to life. This, more than anything else, was what motivated Lucas to spend his first day in the new city at the corporation's building.

Silph/Devon was north of the Pokemon Center and just a few blocks over from the city's Gym. It was also the city's largest building. The lobby of the large building was alive with activity as office workers, researchers, executives and tourists zipped about, consumed with the hectic energies of their personal agendas. The last time Lucas was in an office such as this, it was to infiltrate a plot and stop the nefarious Team Cosmic from recruiting the head of Galactic to their ranks. Once again he went to the receptionist to ask questions, though this time it was for his own reasons rather than having a mission.

Lucas began to suspect all receptionists were alike. With professional, well-practiced friendliness the polished woman behind the counter with a near-constant smile informed the visitor that her company's fossil lab was on the 16th floor. And that the facility was open to Trainers and was more than happy to give more information about the lab and would he be interested in going on a tour as well? The teen did his best to break away from the over-eager secretary's rehearsed pitch and got into the elevator to the 16th floor. Like the Galactic Building in Sinnoh, a tour guide with an artificial cheerfulness motored on about the history of the company and the features of the facilities to a group of various people paying various amounts of attention. The group got off on the fifth floor (a guided view of Pokemon good manufacturing!) while Lucas stayed on and continued on his way to the lab.

When the elevator reached the 16th floor the doors opened with a ding to a large laboratory. Like the main floor of the office, the lab was bustling with activity. Interns zipped between desks while men and women in lab coats were working over microscopes and spectroscopes, and a group of scientists with thinly veiled impatience put up with answering questions from a tour group. Another tour group swept past Lucas as he stepped off the elevator and started wandering around the delicate and fascinating equipment, searching for whoever he needed to speak with in order to have his fossil brought to life. For how well organized everything else was, the teen was a bit frustrated that reviving wasn't more clearly labeled. Finally the Trainer decided to ask someone. Looking for a scientist that looked the least busy, he tapped the shoulder of a man who had just finished writing down something in a report

"Yes?" the scientist responded with tried patience.

"Um, hi, sorry to bother you but I was wondering, who do I talk to order to get someone to turn my fossil into a Cranidos?" Lucas tried to explain politely, though after running around the floor wildly for several minutes, wasn't much more patient than the scientist.

"Oh, you're a Trainer!" the man immediately got friendlier once he realized Lucas wasn't a tourist, "Oh sure, I can take of that for you. The process is actually pretty fast. We should have your Pokemon ready in about an hour if you don't mind waiting around. Or you could always join one of the tour groups," the scientist added wryly as he gestured his head towards the newest tour group some unlucky researcher was now forced to babysit.

"Oh sure, that sounds like loads of fun!" Lucas responded with a snort. The man shook his head with a smile and went behind a door that was marked 'employees only'. The teen and his Eevee instead chose to wait around, quietly observing the remaining scientists as they continued to shuffle slides and write down information. The Trainer silently wished he was smarter, as he was fascinated by the employees' work but knew even on his best day couldn't wrap his brain the complex material they took for granted.

As he leaned against the edge of a desk and tried to glean some of the writing from a finished report a lady with pencils stuck in her hair had just set down, a man approached the teen. He had light gray eyes and light blue hair. He was impeccably dressed with a perfectly tailored suit, immaculate shirt and tie and high-end, yet tastefully understated, jewelry in the form of tungsten rings and stainless steel and platinum necklace. The man carried himself with huge authority, yet clearly was incredibly charismatic and friendly. It was obvious to Lucas that he was an executive and though he looked fairly young, only approaching his thirties, he probably had a lot of authority in the company. He immediately caught the Trainer's attention. Not only did his personality seem to command attention wherever he went, he also addressed Lucas without hesitation. It was rare for even the friendliest and most open-minded of people to talk to the tattooed teen with the Mohawk and numerous piercings to without at least a little trepidation. This man smiled and asked Lucas directly, "Excuse me, are you waiting on a Pokemon revival?"

"Yeah," Lucas nodded, "But I went to the guy about fifteen minutes ago so it should only be another forty-five minutes,"

"Ah, that's not too bad a wait. I recently got in possession of a Root Fossil and now that I'm back in the office I'd really like to evolve it. What kind of fossil did you bring in?"

"A Skull Fossil,"

"Ah, that means you'll be getting a Cranidos. Does that mean you've been in Sinnoh recently?"

"Yeah, I just left there a week or so ago. I'm here now to challenge the Hoenn League," Lucas explained continued to make small-talk with the stranger.

The man looked over the teen and squinted as though he were trying to remember something. Then he smiled with recognition, "Ah, that must mean you're Lucas, the new Sinnoh Champion,"

"Yeah, that's right? How did you know?"

"There've been a lot pictures of you going around," the man responded, "It took me a second to place you but you've been in our news just as much as in Sinnoh's. You're getting to be pretty famous. But if you're the Sinnoh Champion, that must mean you're also the guy that ended up with my house,"

"Wait, what?" Lucas blurted.

"I had heard from my men in Sinnoh that the home I had in the Resort Area had been given to a red-haired Trainer with tattoos and an Eevee, and had later become Champion,"

"Oh, there you are Mr. Stone. We have some new schematics that we would like you to approve," A lady in a tailored red pantsuit approached the man and handed him a folder. Upon hearing the name something clicked in the teen's mind.

"Mr. Stone? As in Steven Stone? The CEO of this company?" Lucas felt his heart go into his throat.

"That would be correct," the man responded with a mischievous smile.

Lucas felt himself grow pale before blushing brightly. He scrambled through the numerous pockets of his clothing, searching desperately for the house keys he had gotten in Sinnoh. On his way to getting his final Sinnoh Badge, Lucas had ended up in the Resort Area in the northern part of the region. As he was passing through, a shady real estate agent gave him a set of keys and a deed, claiming he was now a proud owner of a luxurious mansion completely for free. The teen thought the deal too good to be true, even when reassured that the transaction was perfectly legal. Now he had just learned that the house he had ended up with belonged to one of the wealthiest and most famous Trainers in the Pokemon world. The Trainer finally found the object and shoved them towards the CEO, "Here! You can have it back. It's really your house to begin with, anyway,"

Steven smiled reassuringly and waved Lucas' gesture off, "Now, now, I'm not upset with you. I was just teasing you a bit for my own amusement. You can keep it, I wasn't using the property anyway. You didn't do anything wrong. But if I do ever track down that real estate agent...well, let's just say the things I do probably would be looked highly upon by the Board of Executives,"

"Still, it doesn't feel right to have a house that nice for free. There's gotta be _something_ I can do for you?"

The well-dressed young man frowned in thought at he rubbed his chin, then his surprisingly mischievous grin returned, "Actually, I think there is something you can do for me now that you're here, being that you're a Champion and all..."

Steven didn't say much after that. Instead, he addressed some of his employees and told Lucas to go down to the 12th floor, which was the marketing department. Lucas went along, but a nagging feeling was telling him he may have agreed to help prematurely, and would have been smarter to get the terms of his help before agreeing to go along with the CEO's scheme. Steven Stone was clearly a smart, charismatic businessman and a respected and formidable Trainer. But it was now becoming apparent that there was an impish side to the otherwise serious man. The older blue-haired man lead the Trainer to a room where the walls were pinned with slogans and product designs, and several pedestals contained Pokemon products. Steven picked up one that was very familiar to Lucas, "This is the Pokemon Device. We've been developing it for a while and we've just finished the beta testing by providing samples to some of the most famous and well respected Trainers across our regions. It's a phone, computer, library, calendar and much, much more in one convenient touchscreen device,"

"Oh a Pokevice, I've got one of those. It's really useful," Lucas pulled out his own red and white Pokevice from his duffel bag.

"Excellent. This thing is going to blow the PokeGear out of the water and we have everything ready to launch the product. Everything that is, except a celebrity spokesman to lead the advertising campaign," Steven explained as he put the prototype back on its pedestal and looked over Lucas' device.

"Oh cool, who were you thinking of having? I remember you got Mary from Pokemon Talk for the old PokeGear commercials," Lucas asked naively. Steven's closed-eye, beaming smile gave the teen his answer, "Whoa! Wait a minute. You want me to be in the ads for the Pokevice?!"

"Lucas, it'll be perfect! You just became Champion of Sinnoh and everyone's talking about you. And they'll talk about you even more as you make your way across Hoenn. And you have the perfect image. You're rebellious, assertive and courageous. If you have a Pokevice, everyone will want a Pokevice!" Steven explained excitedly.

"But I'm not an actor. I don't really do well in front of a camera," Lucas tried to argue.

"It's not acting, it's an endorsement. And you actually do use and like the product, so you're hardly selling out if that's what you're worried about. Let me tell you, usually we pay about a million and half for endorsements, and that mansion in the Resort Area was appraised for double that so..." Steven added off-handedly.

"Okay, okay, fine. I said I'd do something to make up for the house, and I try to stick to my word. So if you want me in your commercials, I'll do your commercials," Lucas sighed grimly.

"Perfect. And I thought this was going to be a good day just because I was getting a Lileep,"

"You're kind of evil, you know that?"

"Hey," Steven smiled slyly as he patted his new spokesman on the shoulder, "I didn't become CEO of this company just because of who my father was. By the way, your Pokevice was seriously in need of an update, so added all the apps for maps and guides to Hoenn. Now let's get you into makeup."


	49. Chapter 49 Old School

Chapter 49: Old School

Lucas sat in the screening room, tugging at his lip rings nervously as he waited for the screen to come to life. The tattooed, Mohawk-bearing, teen Trainer was generally not a self-conscious person, though his brain tended to shut off around people he found attractive, it was rare for him to get genuinely embarrassed. Yet here he was, dreading what he was about to view.

The Trainer had come to Rustboro City to seek his second Hoenn League badge, but had decided that his brisk pace from city to city earned him a day of sightseeing. He had come to the Silph/Devon Inc main office to revive his Cranidos from a fossil. A new Pokemon that was now sitting contently in the Pokeball next to Lucas in his seat. While waiting for the scientist to give him his new Pokemon, he started talking to the fancy dressed man in line behind him, only to discover that his new line buddy wasn't just the company's young CEO, Steven Stone, but also the original owner of the high end mansion Lucas had received back in Sinnoh. And that was how Lucas got suckered into doing Steven's bidding. Through one part charm and another part good ol' fashioned guilt, the business mastermind convinced the teen Champion to become the new spokesman for the Pokevice, the official release now only a few weeks away.

Steven sat right next to Lucas in the viewing room, his wide, easy-going, and not entirely innocent smile beaming triumphantly on his face. With a gesture to the employee in charge of the projection machine the commercial started. The ad started with a bang as a pair of Pokemon clashed in a brightly lit arena. A Charizard was battling a Victrebel and with a magnificent fireball from its throat, the flower Pokemon went careening across the stadium as a shadowed out figure slumped his shoulders in defeat. The camera panned towards the other opponent who had pumped his fist in the air in victory and the lights came up on the figure to expose who the victorious fighter was.

"_Hi, I'm Lucas, the new Champion of the Sinnoh League. I became Champion through hard work, trusting my Pokemon and never backing down from a challenge. But along my Journey to the top, I got a lot of help from this, the Pokemon Device,"_ the onscreen Lucas pulled out the red and white Pokevice from inside his vest. This was not his actual Pokevice of course. His was scuffed and scratched from being actually used, for the commercial the marketing department insisted he used a specially polished mock-up that would look better onscreen. They also hadn't let the Trainer use his _actual _Charizard, _"The Pokevice is the latest in Trainer technology. Whether I want to use the map to figure out where I'm going or use the call function to rechallenge old opponents, the Pokevice is the best and most convenient tool for a Pokemon Trainer on the go. And with downloadable apps and functions, there are no limits to what the Pokevice—or me can do,"_

Lucas groaned and watched through his fingers. _I used to take lunch money from dorks like that and now I've become one,_ he thought to himself. He hadn't been this embarrassed since the time about a year ago when the principal of his high school caught him making out with his daughter. Lucas had been waiting in the principal's office to hear the punishment for his latest transgression when the principal's daughter had come in. She was cute, but not his type, so he was easily able to talk to her and charm her with his bad boy persona. Before he knew it she had climbed on his lap and started kissing him only to have her father walk in a few minutes later, catching her straddling Cherrygrove City's Public Enemy Number One. It was not Lucas' finest moment, and afterward the principal looked for any and all opportunities to throw out the thug who had seduced his precious princess. As the first commercial ended and a few variations of the commercial followed it, Lucas was mentally kicking himself for not being more insistent in giving the keys to the Sinnoh mansion back.

With the final commercial ended and a few of the magazine mockups shown in a slide show, Steven gestured to the workers to turn off the projector and bring the lights back up. Unlike Lucas and his desire to crawl under a rock, the young CEO couldn't contain his excitement, "This campaign is going to be major success. I think we should even increase the orders of devices for the Pokevice launch! In a few short weeks we are going to change the face of Trainer technologies, and you're going to be the one responsible, Lucas!"

"So does this mean I'm off the hook for the house?" Lucas grumbled.

"Hey, not are we even on the house, if this goes as well as I know it will, in another few months I'll want you to do another campaign and this time I'll pay you handsomely for it!" Steven clapped his hand on the teen's shoulder again, "Thanks again Lucas. And if you ever need anything else from Silph/Devon, I put my personal number in your Pokevice contacts,"

"Er, thanks," Lucas said skeptically, "It's been a real trip, but I need to get going now. I still want to explore the city and tomorrow I'm facing the Gym Leader,"

"Good luck Lucas and keep on winning! I'll be seeing you again soon," Steven said confidently. One of the CEO's assistants lead the teen back out the building. It was already dark when he left the corporate office, the photo shoots, screen tests and takes taking agonizing hours to finish. It wasn't too bad, but he was still dreading when those cheesy commercials would air. It would take a lot of his ambition to not have his reputation damaged, and he didn't even want to think about what his brother would say to him once he saw them...

The teen spent his evening going to a nice restaurant and wandering around the city with his Pokemon before going back to the Pokemon Center to prepare for the next day's challenge. Having just about as much of Rustboro as he could handle, the teen headed bright and early the next morning to the Gym. As he had discovered yesterday, the Gym was not far from Silph/Devon's headquarters. The sign in front announced the city's Leader: _Roxanne, the rock-steady teacher_. All indications seemed that this Gym's specialty was rock-types. Rock types were simple enough to fight with grass types and water types. And after the near-disaster in Petalburg, Lucas knew he had to have high-level Pokemon, as the Leader would be required to use an advanced team for such an advanced Trainer. His training in the Petalburg Woods guaranteed this. His Mudkip and Turtwig had evolved to their next stages, as had his Tailow and his Beautifly had increased significantly in level. Only Diablo remained just shy of his eighteenth level. As the teen Trainer approached the doors of the Gym, he noticed a sign just above the handle: _Attention Trainers who wish to challenge the Leader. You must report at the Pokemon School first._

Lucas let out a snort. It had begun again. In Sinnoh, almost every Gym Leader required the teen to track the Leader down before he could actually challenge them, and it appeared the tradition was going to remain in tact. Lucas didn't mind too much. It gave his Journey a comforting sense of familiarity. The school was quite a bit away from the Gym, being closer to the front of Rustboro, whereas the Gym sat closer to the town's exit. After a few minutes the teen arrived and walked into the school. It had been years since he'd set foot in a Pokemon School. He had dropped out of his own in Violet City when his brother John had become a Trainer.

Contrary to a lot of outsiders' understanding, the people of the Pokemon League had normal educations. It was expected that a person would graduate high school and move on to a normal, mundane career. Pokemon Training was viewed as a rite of passage, and thus most kids took a year or two off to go on a Journey. After their Journeys, even if they became extremely successful Trainers, kids would go back to school and complete their educations. Depending on their families and interests, many people never even went on a Journey, or simply got their Trainer licenses to keep Pokemon as pets, thus Pokemon Schools were more like cotillion or religious classes, additional education that didn't interfere with the math and science classes of regular school. Here in Pokemon School, kids would learn what they needed to do on their adventures: battle etiquette, how to catch Pokemon, what they can and can't do while traveling and what to prepare for as they go out on their own.

Lucas walked into the classroom silently while a teacher at the front of the room was lecturing about statuses and Pokemon items. She was a surprisingly young woman, probably only a year or two older than Lucas was, a far cry from the eccentric teacher he remembered from his own Pokemon School days. She had long black hair tied up with ribbons into an elegant updo, and light brown eyes behind wire frame glasses, "What happens when a Pokemon gets poisoned?"

A student shot up her hand, "They continue to lose health points until they faint in battle,"

"And?" the teacher prodded.

"The status continues outside of battle and will continue until healed or the Pokemon faints," another boy answered.

"What can we do to get rid of poison?" the teacher pointed her marker at a shy looking boy who hadn't answered yet.

"Use an item like Full Restore, Full Heal or a Pecha berry," the small boy stammered. When the teacher smiled he seemed more encouraged, "There are also Pokemon Abilities that can heal themselves like Shed Skin and Natural Cure,"

"Very good everyone!" the young woman clapped her hands and when she looked up she finally seemed to have noticed Lucas in the room, "Hello there, how can I help you?"

"Hi, I'm a Trainer and I'm looking to challenge the Rustboro Gym Leader. The sign on the Gym said I need to come here first," Lucas replied.

"Ah yes," the woman nodded, "I am Roxanne, the Leader in this city. I also teach at the Pokemon School, which is why I ask people who want to challenge me to come here," she turned to her students, "Class, we are heading down to the Gym now. I want you all to take notes about the battle and write an analysis of what this Trainer will do correctly and incorrectly during the match. Excuse me, could you do me a favor and introduce yourself, Mr. Trainer?"

"Sure, my name is Lucas,"

Roxanne's face brightened as she seemed to recognize him, "You mean the new Sinnoh Champion?"

"Yup, that's me,"

"Class, we're in for a real treat today. This young man is the recent Champion of the Sinnoh League. Does anyone know what that means?"

"I do! I do Miss Roxanne!" A little boy waved his arm furiously, "It means he got all the badges from the Sinnoh Gym, faced their Elite Four and beat their Champion,"

"That is correct. It also means because he is a Champion of another League I have to use my advanced team for our battle. That means I will be using Pokemon I normally don't because they are much higher level them my usual challengers," Roxanne then turned her attention back to Lucas, "But before we battle, Lucas, could I ask you to talk to my class a little bit about what it's like to be a Champion and what it took you to get there?"

"Um, sure, that's fine. What kind of stuff should I talk about?" Lucas asked. Even as hard as he worked when he was in Pokemon School, school was never his element, let alone teaching it.

"Why don't you talk about how you passed your test to get your Pokemon Trainer's License, and how the professor gave you your first Pokemon," Roxanne turned back to her class, "Remember everyone. When you pass the test on your tenth birthdays and get your license from this school, you'll be allowed to get one of the special starter Pokemon from Professor Birch,"

"Uh..." Lucas started sheepishly and dug his hands into his pockets as he walked to the front of the class, "Actually, I found my first Pokemon. This is Gizmo, an Eevee. He was abandoned in the woods because his first Trainer didn't think he was good enough. I didn't get my Trainer's License by passing the Trainer test, I got it because Professor Oak pulled some strings for me. In fact, I never even actually finished Pokemon School,"

Roxanne looked dumbstruck, "Wh-what do you mean, you never finished Pokemon School? But you became Champion! You could have only done that by going to Pokemon School,"

"Well, I did go when I was a kid. But I dropped out when I was seven. Some drama with my older brother, not anything you're interested in. But yeah, I never finished the full education," Lucas continued.

"Then how did you learn everything you needed to know for Training?" one of the class asked.

"I learned as I went. A lot of trial and error. I figured things out as I needed to and discovered a lot of stuff that the school doesn't cover," Lucas explained.

"Wait, wait, so we don't actually need to go to Pokemon School in order to become Trainers? We could even become Champions without having to do all the reading and homework?" one boy said hopefully.

"You still need Pokemon School to pass the Trainer test. You can't Train Pokemon without a license. It's illegal," Roxanne said huffily, her voice become slightly higher pitched as she struggled to contain her shock and outrage.

"But Mr. Lucas got _his_ license without the test. And he was able to become a super important Trainer without even a special starter Pokemon," another little girl pointed out.

It was all the young woman could take. As far as she was concerned the idea of Lucas being a first class Trainer without Pokemon School was heresy. Sure, lots of Trainers passed the test without having the special education, but they never amounted to much more than Youngsters and Bug Catchers, mediocre Trainers who usually went back to regular school in less than a year. But a Champion, it was unheard of! "Mr Lucas may have become Champion of Sinnoh without Pokemon School, but he's about to face a Trainer who was top of her class during Pokemon School. Still the only Trainer in Hoenn history to get a perfect score on her test. Then you kids will understand the difference—and importance—between good Pokemon education, and just 'winging it',"

Now Lucas was completely insulted. This woman was insinuating that he was somehow an inferior Trainer simply because he never finished the voluntary and optional classes offered by the Pokemon League. Sure, he may have made a lot of mistakes and errors in his Journey, hell, he was still making them now, but it didn't make the information he knew any less valid than what this girl had read in her books. He took an active effort not to swear in front of the kids, but his tone made his intent clear, "Listen you...very unpleasant woman. People don't become Champions of any League by pulling stuff out of their...ear. I worked my...butt off in order to get where I am now. So you can take your Pokemon School and your attitude and shove them straight up your...nose,"

"It really is time to get to the Gym, children. We're in for a very important lesson,"

The interior of the Rustboro Gym was much like the one in Oreburgh. A large, stone covered field that gave the impression of a cave. Unlike a cave, however, there was a bleacher full of wide-eyed school children dying to learn the answer to the ultimate question: can experience really trump education? Both opponents who stood and faced each other in the arena had very different views on the subject. Roxanne made her Leader speech, addressing her class just as much as her adversary, "I am Roxanne, Leader of the Rustboro City Gym. During my school days I was top of my class, able to be a Gym Leader even during my education. I'm the only one in Hoenn to get a perfect grade on my Trainer Test. My specialty is rock types. Though it appears as they have many weaknesses, rock types are a clear cut and easy to understand type whose recorded strategies have stood the test of time. With a combination of the things I learned in school and the devotion I have to my Pokemon, I will show you the power of a first-rate education,"

Lucas had a little speech of his own, "My name is Lucas and I am the Champion of Sinnoh. I am originally from Cherrygrove City. I was never a good student. I was never good at math or science and I can't spell worth...poop. But I love Pokemon. So I learned everything I needed to my own way and I'm every bit as good a Trainer as those who did graduate Pokemon School,"

"Go Graveler!" the Leader announced.

"Go Bruce!" Lucas threw out his own Pokemon. Like he had planned for, the Graveler was in its mid-twenties. A level that Lucas had trained for and was confident his Marshtomp could handle. Surprisingly, the Leader paused before she attacked.

"Marshtomp. Quickly, someone give me this Pokemon's strengths and weaknesses," Roxanne commanded.

"Marshtomp is a water type, so it's weak against grass, electric and dragon types,"

"No, it's also a ground type, so that means electric won't hit it. But that means it's doubly weak against grass types and it can't hit flying Pokemon,"

"Excellent my students. Duel type Pokemon may have twice as many advantages, but they typically have twice as many weaknesses as well," the Leader responded before turning her attention back to the battle, "Graveler, use Magnitude!"

"Bruce, Water Gun!" Magnitude was a fairly powerful ground move compared to the lower level water attack, its power attributed from very low to being able to knock out even high-powered Pokemon with a type advantage. But with the type matches both Pokemon ended up with equal damage. Lucas called out the attack again, "Another Water Gun Bruce, finish it off!"

"Graveler, also use Magnitude again!" Roxanne commanded. Once again the Pokemon attacked. But unlike the previous earthshaking attack, this time the Graveler's move barely trembled the building. Bruce on the other hand took his Trainer's order to heart and managed to land a critical attack. This time the rock Pokemon was KOed.

Lucas pumped his fist, "Nice work, Bruce! This Gym match may be our fastest victory yet. There are some things a fancy education just can't match,"

Roxanne was undisturbed. In fact she turned back to her class as though this were all still just merely a lesson, "Class, do you remember one of our first lessons on battling? A match is never determined by the first round, only the final one,"


	50. Chapter 50 Lucas v Roxanne

Chapter 50: Lucas vs. Roxanne

The road to the Hoenn League was starting to be an interesting one for Lucas. The teen from Cherrygrove had only been there a little more than a week and a half and had managed to rescue a professor, shut down a roving Pokemon gang, become the star of a commercial and get his first Gym badge. Now he stood in the Gym of Rustboro City, prepared to win his second.

His opponent was Roxanne, the local Pokemon School teacher and the only Trainer in Hoenn to receive a perfect score on her Trainer test, the long exam required to obtain a Pokemon License and legally become a Trainer. After an incident at the school their battle became more than about a badge, it became a battle of ideology. On one side, Roxanne and her almost fanatical belief that a proper and thorough education was the only way to become a first-rate Trainer. On the other, Lucas and his staunch belief that anything you learn on the street was just as valuable as anything in a classroom. During their first round Lucas managed to KO the young teacher's Graveler without much difficulty, but as their second round began Roxanne seemed unfazed.

"Go Rhyhorn!" Roxanne threw out her Pokeball and out came the large rhino-like Pokemon. And like the Graveler, this rock-type was also in its mid-twenties.

Lucas decided to change strategies and recalled his Marstomp, "Good job Bruce, let's give it a break for now. Go! Grotle!"

The grass and ground type tortoise appeared before the crowd of children, eying the Rhyhorn with as much determination as his Trainer, waiting for the first command, "Grotle! Use Razor Leaf!"

"Rhyhorn! Use Earthquake!" Roxanne commanded in response. Grotle's move did heavy damage to its opponent, but the high powered ground type attack shook the entire Gym violently. Once again, despite type advantages Lucas' Pokemon took a heavy blow. As Lucas snarled against the damage, Roxanne looked at him smugly and once again addressed the group of children seated in the Gym's bleachers, "Now class, normally a Rhyhorn won't learn Earthquake until it's level 52, but remember you can always modify a Pokemon's moves with a TM. Which is what I did with my Rhyhorn. Also, usually because of the type differences a ground move won't work very well on another ground type like a Grotle, and even worse with a type disadvantage like with a grass type. But because Earthquake is such a powerful move, with your Pokemon's attack being high enough, you can overcome type advantages. Of course, that kind of information comes from studying breeding and nature theory, which is extremely advanced information. But luckily in addition to my very high quality Pokemon School studies, I've been taking courses on Pokemon biology at the university. I take it you've never been to a university, right Mr. Lucas?"

"Nope, I'm a high school dropout," Lucas sneered with almost a bit of pride. Roxanne's eyes narrowed again, "Grotle! Razor Leaf!"

"Rhyhorn! Use Earthquake again!" While Roxanne may have trained her Pokemon for attack, Grotle had a slight speed advantage. The more powerful grass attack knocked out the Rhyhorn before it could attack again. Now the Gym Leader was down to her final Pokemon. Lucas was wary but unconcerned. For all her posturing, he still managed to knock out two of her Pokemon very quickly while his team was largely still intact. But he wasn't stupid. He knew a Leader's final Pokemon was always the trump card and Roxanne's smug smile suggested she still had an ace up her sleeve, "Go Probopass!"

The Leader's final Pokemon was a huge beast that looked like a giant statue. Despite its size and clearly rocky nature, the creature seemed to be floating in midair. But a rock type was still a rock type, "Grotle, use Razor Leaf again! Let's get this over now!"

Roxanne was doing everything in her power to suppress her giggling as the land tortoise's knife-like leaves seemed to bounce harmlessly off the Probopass's rocky sides. Lucas tried his best to hide the stunned expression on his face as he tried to process why the grass move was so useless. The teacher answered for him, "You look confused, Lucas. Did you not learn about every known Pokemon while making your way to the top of Sinnoh? You're telling me that stuff like that wasn't part of your 'trial and error' method of Training? What a shock. Class, does anyone know why Mr. Lucas's grass move failed so utterly and entirely?"

"Probopass is part steel type, so grass moves aren't very effective against it," One of the little girls from Roxanne's class answered.

Lucas regained his calm. He refused to feel stupid for the mistake. Yes, he messed up, but he had no way of knowing what he was up against, he had never encountered the Pokemon before. There were hundreds of Pokemon in the world, more discovered every day, and he very much doubted the prissy Roxanne had seen or knew every Pokemon either. She was just trying to psych him out, and he wouldn't let that bubble of doubt that was growing in his stomach boil over. So Probopass was a steel type. Unfortunately, despite Grotle being a ground type, it didn't know any ground type moves. He did what he could, "Tackle, Grotle!"

"Probopass, Magnet Bomb!" Roxanne responded. Poor Grotle was in too bad shape from the previous Earthquake attack and the steel attack knocked it out.

But Roxanne hadn't triumphed yet, he still had five more Pokemon left on his team. If Roxanne thought she pulled a surprise with her part steel Pokemon, he'd use a pinch hitter of his own, "Go, Diablo! Finish this fight!"

The Poochyena came into the battle ready for a brawl. It glanced back at Lucas and nodded determinedly, ready for whatever command his new-found hero had for him. The young Leader looked far less impressed and drolly turned to her class to give their analysis, "Class, let's analyze the situation, shall we? Who is at an advantage in this match?"

"The Probopass. Dark type moves aren't very effective against steel moves, and Poochyena at that level don't know much more than normal moves, which aren't effective against rock types,"

"Also, there is a big level difference between the two. Mr. Lucas' Poochyena is only level 17, while Miss Roxanne's Pokemon is level 28,"

"And evolved Pokemon are typically having better stats than unevolved Pokemon,"

"That is correct, children. Mr. Lucas has made a mistake since the beginning of the battle. Like I said time and time again, a battle is never determined by its first match. It is determined by the final one. It is important to strategize from the very beginning. By losing the first two rounds, I have seen most of his team and his battle strategy, and now that I know that, I'll be able to defeat him and his entire team. You must know type advantages, item use and battle strategy before you can become a first-rate Trainer. And to master all of those you have to study that information for years and years," Roxanne lectured. Lucas couldn't help but smile as the girl blathered on. She really had no idea what she was in for. Finally after her monologue she called out her next command, "Probopass, use Rock Tomb!

"Diablo, Rock Smash," Lucas could actually see Roxanne's jaw drop as the tiny Poochyena dodged the attack and slammed into the Probopass. The fighting move's two-tiered advantage, plus the small Pokemon's determination overpowered the Probopass and knocked the creature out. The Gym match was over, Lucas had won.

Roxanne stood stunned, as though she could barely comprehend what just happened. She still hadn't even recalled her defeated Pokemon. She just stared, moving her line of sight back and forth from the Poochyena to the tattooed Trainer in front of her. But as they both stood, the small Poochyena started to glow and within the span of a minute, the creature evolved into a Mightyena.

The children sat and whispered in awe of the match, and seeing a Pokemon evolve firsthand. Lucas saw this opportunity to give a little lecture of his own, "Okay kids, let me explain to you a thing. Lesson number one _isn't_ that a match isn't determined by the first match only the final one. That's lesson two. Lesson one is never, ever underestimate your opponent, no matter what they throw at you. I don't care if they summon a Caterpie or a Magikarp, never take anything for granted. A battle is more than about analysis and type advantage and Pokemon natures. Just because it looks like you could win a match on paper doesn't mean much in real life. Books cover TMs and items, but Pokemon can learn all sorts of moves that you wouldn't expect them to, and you don't learn that unless you experiment and deal with real Trainers and real life experience. And strategy is good and all, but you have to actually take into account what's actually going on in front of you. Sticking to something just because it's worked before and is a time-tested strategy is going to guarantee you defeat. 'Winging it' is sometimes the smartest thing you can do. And you won't learn any of this stuff until you actually start having your own battles with your own Pokemon. There's only so much you can learn from seeing what other people have done or said. So endeth the lesson,"

The whispering ended and the kids stared at the older Trainer in awe. It was a funny feeling to have people admire him for a change, but it was a good one, too. Roxanne on the other hand still looked at the Trainer in contempt, "Since you defeated me I am required to give your rewards and your badge. This is the Stone Badge, and I also present to you the TM for Rock Tomb. I don't need to bother to tell you what it's for. You've clearly proven your point. Experience is more important that education. I've learned my life is a lie,"

Lucas rolled his eyes and approached the young woman directly, Gizmo still sitting peacefully on his shoulder and Diablo pacing behind him loyally, "Clearly you haven't learned a damn thing," The class gasped at the swear word, "Sorry," and readdressed the Gym Leader, "My point wasn't that education is stupid, my point was that books and classes aren't the only way to learn things. Like I said before when I was starting out I made a lot of really boneheaded mistakes. Like I had completely forgotten that winning a battle entitles you to part of your opponent's money. And I lost a Gym match because I didn't plan for all contingencies and just assumed I'd have an easy time because of type advantage. I felt so bad about it I almost quite Training. If a friend hadn't kicked my ass," another gasp, "Sorry. I would have given up on my dream. Listen, if it's easier for you to understand something by reading it in a book, that's great, but for some people they need to do something before they learn it. Learning is vital. Learn as much as you can so the mistakes you do make are small ones. But learning one way isn't automatically better than learning another way, get it?"

Roxanne's expression softened and she nodded her head slowly, liking like she was about to cry, "I'm so sorry I disrespected you like that Lucas. I had absolutely no right to do that. I hope you'll forgive me,"

"Sure, I've got no beef with you. Only shows you never really stop learning, right?"

"Right," Roxanne smiled and shook her opponent's hand. With that, Lucas took his prizes, waved goodbye to the children and left the Gym.

Lucas headed to the Pokemon Center and prepared for the next leg of his Journey, having had all Rustboro had to offer. He sat on one of the Center's couches with Gizmo and Diablo sitting on either side of him as he planned where he was going next. Using the new apps Steven Stone had installed in his Pokevice, Lucas started flipping through the maps and digital region guide. Because of the web-like nature of Hoenn's road and ferry system, he had two perfectly valid options. His first was heading east to the Rusturf Tunnel which connected Rustburo with Verdantuf City and the Verdanturf Gym. His other was to head back through the small Petalburg Forest and head south to the Gym on the island of Dewford. After a few minutes of consideration, the teen went with the former option. He was not fond of backtracking unless he really had to. He gestured to Gizmo to jump on his shoulder and when he got up he found himself knocked to the ground. Diablo had jumped on his back. The flabbergasted Trainer pushed the large Pokemon off of himself.

"Diablo, dude, seriously, what are you doing?" The Pokemon looked to the Eevee on his shoulder and once again tried to climb on the opposite shoulder of his Trainer. That's when Lucas realized what he was doing, "Diablo, are you trying to come up here with Gizmo?" The Pokemon's ears dropped slightly, "Sorry pal, you're too big to ride on my back like Gizmo does. You're too heavy," The Pokemon whined and thudded himself stubbornly in Lucas' lap, dropping his head on his Trainer's knee. The teen let out an amused sigh and scratched Diablo's dog-like head, "Unfair how we can't do things once we grow up, right? Well, you can still follow behind me. Just because he rides up top doesn't mean I like Gizmo better. Okay?"

The answer seemed to satisfy the Mightyena somewhat and the group headed out of the center to leave the city. Lucas was finding his Pokemon's personality change quite amusing. When he first caught the determined Poochyena, he had not taken to the idea of being a trained Pokemon at all. Now the Pokemon was downright clingy to his Trainer. It was endearing in its own way.

Once heading north to exit Rustboro, the Rusturf Tunnel was just east of a few patches of grassland. Lucas ran into a few low level Trainers that had thought challenging him was a good idea and caught a wild Nincanda in the grass. As he approached the tunnel he noticed a crowd gathered around a nervous looking man in a suit and a few workers in hard hats. The crowd seemed to be turning nasty and in front of the mob was a neatly dressed woman with a microphone being shadowed by a slacker type with a camera, "Mr. Mayor, it's been two weeks since the collapse of the Rusturf Tunnel and it's _still_ closed to residents and Trainers. Can you please explain to the public what's the holdup? You promised last week that it'd be reopened by now,"

Closed tunnel. That meant that Lucas would be heading for Dewford Town instead. He would start heading back through the other way in a moment, but he wanted to hear what the mayor was going to say about the situation. The reporter shoved the mike further into the mayor's face, "Uh, I. Miss Gabby, the situation is still very fluid and clearly a cave in isn't the same as clearing snow or fixing a road. In addition to clearing the rocks that are blocking access to Verdanturf, we have to insure that there won't be any future potential for danger. These things take time. We can only give an estimate and hope we can stick to it,"

"But what about the cause of the cave in? Investigators from the geological department in Slateport _and_ representatives of the Pokemon League have come to check out the situation and there is still no official report. Is there some kind of cover up, Mr. Mayor?" the reporter continued.

The frazzled official's temper started to flare, "Miss Gabby, I am not at liberty to comment about the situation. All I'll say is that neither myself nor the Pokemon League will allow the tunnel to reopen until we are satisfied with our investigation and can guarantee its safety. The minor details of the situation are not anything you or any of our citizens have to worry about,"

"The public has the right to know!" the reporter chirped.

"I've said all I needed to say. Now goodbye and get out of here, the tunnel is still closed," the mayor gave a dismissive gesture and followed the two workers that had remained silent on either side of him back into the tunnel. The reporter let out a growl of exasperation and motioned to her cameraman to cut. As the crowd parted with a murmur of frustrated whining, Lucas continued to remain. He was having a bad case of deja vu. The last time he was faced with a situation like this was in Sinnoh. In an attempt to go to Sunnyshore City, Lucas discovered the ways in were blocked off because of 'electrical problems.' In reality the city getting cut off was a plot by the nefarious Team Cosmic to forcibly recruit the Gym's Leader, Volkner. His gut instinct told him something was wrong, and he would need to be on high alert in Hoenn as he had back in Sinnoh.

As the reporter and her cameraman were the last to walk away from the tunnel's entrance, she looked towards Lucas grimly before a moment of realization passed her face. She beamed and approached the teen in the same aggressive way she had confronted the mayor.

"Excuse me, but by any chance are you Lucas, the new Sinnoh League Champion?" the woman's in-your-face tactic made the teen feel a bit more sympathetic to the suspicious official.

"Uh...yeah?" Lucas replied warily.

The woman briefly turned towards her cameraman, "Man oh man, when you're good, you're good. Not only do we have an updates for this tunnel story, I'm going to be the first reporter in Hoenn to interview the Sinnoh League Champion—and all in the same day!" Before Lucas could say anything the woman was already shoving the microphone in his direction, "My name's Gabby and I'm the number-one reporter on Hoenn's most popular television program, Hoenn Today. I would absolutely love to do a one-on-one interview with you. What do you say?"

"Um, thanks, but I'll pass," Lucas said as politely as he could manage.

Gabby looked astonished but not discouraged, "Oh come on! You're famous! Everyone wants to know about you. Don't you want to be on TV?"

"Not really," Lucas replied, far less polite this time. The teen Trainer, honestly, was not interested in fame. He already barely tolerated the press conference after he first became Champion and the barrage of questions the reporters had asked him then. He had become a Pokemon Trainer because he liked it, not because he thought it would make him rich and famous. He wanted basic respect, not idolization. His brother was the attention whore, not him. And the tattooed young man already felt silly for agreeing to be Steven's new spokesman, and that was only because he felt dishonest for taking a free house. Looking back, he should have just given back the house.

"Well, I can see you're not in the mood to be interviewed now. I can respect that. So we'll just do this another time," Gabby said lightheartedly.

"No, I don't think you understand-" Lucas tried to explain. He had no interest in being interviewed, ever. But before he could finish the reporter interrupted him again.

"We'll be seeing you, Lucas!" she said far too cheerfully.

Lucas turned to Gizmo and then to Diablo for some answers, but they seemed just as lost as he was. He sighed, shook his head and headed back towards Rustboro to start traveling to Dewford. There was something about the way Gabby said she'd be seeing Lucas that knotted his gut almost as badly as the situation with the tunnel. And as he walked he was fairly sure he'd be running into that reporter again far sooner than he'd want.


	51. Chapter 51 Lucas vs Brawly

Chapter 51: Lucas versus Brawly

The trip to Dewford Town had not been a pleasant experience for Lucas. After gaining his second Hoenn badge in Rustboro, his original plan was to head for Verdanturf City through the Rusturf Tunnel. But the tunnel had collapsed due to some unknown reason, being investigated by a pushy reporter named Gabby. Gabby had also tried to get an interview with Lucas, but when he refused she took the 'no' as a 'maybe later' and promised to bother the Trainer again. And so the Trainer was forced to take the long way around by backtracking through the Petalburg Forest back to Petalburg City.

There was no formal ferry between Petalburg City and Dewford Town. Travelers either used Pokemon, or used the volunteer services of the friendly Mr. Briney, a sweet-tempered old man who owned a boat and helped travelers with his Wingull Peeko. However, the services were temporally suspended since the sweet old man and his Pokemon were currently gone on a world cruise, leaving Lucas to travel to his destination by Pokemon. At first this didn't bother the Trainer. He loved traversing the sea on the back of a Pokemon, and at the shores of Petalburg's small, charming beach he caught a lovable Wailmer he called Blobby Bob and taught the move Surf. Things didn't start turning bad until a few hours into his trip, when he made an unpleasant discovery: Hoenn happened to be the Tentacool capital of the world.

Lucas loved all Pokemon. He loved the small ones and big ones, the vicious ones and the cute ones. He played fetch with his Gyrados and even liked the Zubat that pestered him in every cave. But the only Pokemon he had no like for were Tentacool. As a child he was stung by one on a beach. And since then Lucas and Tentacool never became friends. The Tentacool infested waters turned the luxurious sea cruise into the two most miserable days of Lucas' life. And as an additional 'eff you' from nature, for most of the second day it rained. Rain was the only thing in the world Lucas hated more than his brother, being handcuffed, police and disrespect, combined.

So when the teen finally arrived on Dewford, he was already highly prejudiced against the town. He went to the Pokemon Center to recover his sopping, stung body and his beleaguered team, and planned to face the next Gym Leader as soon as possible, so that he could leave the town the same day he entered. The fact that leaving again and heading to the next town would require going back through the Tentacool choked waterways was not something that Lucas' rage-induced thought processes had logically deduced yet. He was still in the irrational blaming stage, and was subscribing to belief that his current batch of problems were exclusively the town's fault, common sense be damned.

Lucas sat half-dressed in one of the Center's private rooms, scrubbing his long-dried head and neck with a towel, trying to get the last of the rain from the trip he was certain still clung to his skin. He flicked through the Trainer's Guide on the Pokevice, muttering profoundly specific and eloquent swears, thankfully out of the earshot of innocent civilians. The Trainer Guide stated that the Gym specialty of tiny Dewford Town was fighting type, and was run by a guy named Brawly. Lucas had faced a fighting Gym before in Sinnoh and after months of experience knew exactly what he was in for. Fighting types were weak against psychic, ground and flying moves and monsters against normal, grass, dark, ice and rock types, but useless against ghost types. Easy enough. His current team was already fairly well set up against fighting type. He had two part-ground type Pokemon he could use, his Marshtomp and Grotle, as well as two flying Pokemon, his Beautifly and Swellow. Gizmo knew the ground move Dig and the ghost move Shadowball, leaving only Diablo the Mightyena at a disadvantage being a dark type. If he prepped with a few backup plans and some surprise attacks, at his current level he could finish off Brawly and head back to sea before sunset.

The tattooed teen pulled the rest of his dry clothing on and headed back out the Pokemon Center. Ever since the Trainer arrived there had been a huge line to get Pokemon checked out and getting a room organized. When he first arrived it had taken him almost twenty minutes before he could get his Pokemon healed and now that he was leaving again he could see the line was getting even longer.

Dewford Town was tiny, made up of only a cave, some local houses, the Pokemon Center, a Pokemart, a catch-all restaurant, inn and bar, and the Gym, so it took Lucas almost no time to travel across the small island. The only other prominent feature of the tiny town was the large beach where seemingly most of the town's population was swimming or sunning themselves, with a large group watching a team of surfers maneuver themselves between the ocean's waves. Lucas spent a minute or so watching the skilled athletes flow around and through the waves, the warm sun starting to alleviate his mood slightly before heading towards the the Gym just passed the restaurant.

As he headed walked, a group of people came out of the restaurant and headed back towards the beach, another team of surfers wanting to challenge the waves. As Lucas passed them, one of the surfers turned slightly to address his friend, the surfboard under his arm turning with him and catching the teen Trainer right in the gut, causing him to grunt, teeter off balance and have poor Gizmo fall off of his shoulder.

"Hey, watch it, asshole!" Lucas snarled as he spun around to confront the careless idiot who damaged him and almost hurt his Pokemon. Diablo stood behind his Trainer, growling at his assailant.

The man with the weaponized surfboard turned back obliviously. He seemed more surprised someone would yell at him than at the consequences of his actions. Lucas stood threateningly at the surfer while the other young man tried to put together what could possibly be upsetting this agitated person. After a second or two he realized what he had done and smiled sheepishly, "Sorry bruh, didn't see you there,"

"Pay attention, dumbass! You can't walk around with a surfboard under your arm and swing it around like you're in the goddamn Three Stooges. And you should be apologizing to my Eevee, not me," Lucas stomped forward and pointed to the Gizmo who was still sitting in the sand where he unceremoniously fell, scratching and shaking the sand out of his fluffy coat.

"Geez dude, you need to learn to chill out," the surfer frowned slightly, "Your Pokemon isn't hurt or anything. And I _am_ trying to apologize. Accidents happen, y'know? If you keep flipping out like this you'll probably get a stroke or something,"

"Dumb, sonuva bitch Beach Bum!" Lucas snapped, "You do something like that again and I'll pound your ass!"

"Okay bruh, whatever. I've gotta go now or I'll miss the best waves. See ya!" the surfer smiled, made a 'hang loose' gesture with hand and went to join the rest of his friends that had already continued on to the shore, leaving Lucas to amplify whatever bad mood the teen had since coming to the town.

Gizmo hopped back onto Lucas' shoulder, distracting his Trainer from the thought of chasing after the idiot surfer and burying him headfirst in the sand. Lucas slowly let out a breath to calm himself down and continued to his destination. It was pointless to get into a fight with a random stranger and risk a police altercation when he was already so far along his Journey. A few weeks into coming to Hoenn and he already had two badges. He knew he still had to learn to control his wildfire temper if he was ever going to become the Champion he wanted to be, or to change people's view of him as nothing but a useless street thug. He couldn't let himself get distracted right before a Gym match. The Gym building itself looked like a proper fighting dojo, and Lucas readied himself for the encounter.

_Brawly, A big wave in fighting._ The sign that announced the Leader and posted previous winners. Lucas was fully prepared this time, the best he ever felt before a match. He was confident enough to believe he was well prepared, but cautious enough to know not to get cocky. He approached the Gym and prepared to open the door—until he saw a hastily made sign taped to the door: _Gym closed today due to excellent waves. Come back tomorrow_.

Lucas let out a scream of rage that could probably be heard across the whole island. Any shred of calm left in the boy evaporated as his temper exploded in a flood of screaming, swearing and kicking the sand.

After his tantrum the teen realized there was nothing he could do but wait. If the Gym was closed until tomorrow, so be it. Instead, Lucas tried very, very hard to make the best of his situation. Yes, the trip to Dewford Town was a disaster; yes, the Pokemon Center took forever to get healed and settled; yes, a moron whomped him and Gizmo with a surfboard; and yes, the Gym was closed. But hey, maybe Dewford Town wasn't so bad. And towards the end of the afternoon, Lucas had almost started to believe it. Lunch at the cantina/bar/hotel was actually pretty good, and in addition to the beach, Dewford actually was a hotspot for self-employed fisherman and boaters to stop and chew the fat about news from the mainland. The bartender that served the Trainer lunch told him if there was anything he ever wanted to know about Hoenn, the restaurant was the best place to learn it. Old sea dogs told tales of legendary Pokemon, hidden ruins and ancient legends about the region. Boaters passing through with cargo talked about rumors of uptick in crime.

Afterward Lucas cruised the beach. With his Tentacool aversion he avoided the water, but helped himself to scene after scene of cute girls in bikinis hanging out with their friends. Something that most certainly perked up the boy's mood completely. Just as the sun started moving towards the evening, the teen actually started feeling like was enjoying himself, and even decided to stay after his Gym match tomorrow to check out the Granite Cave on the edge of town to catch some new Pokemon. But just as he was relaxing, lying back on a blanket in the sand and feeling the warmth of the sun and the breeze from the sea, he heard a conversation that made him shoot straight up, "Brawly, bruh, the way you shredded that last wave was killer. Epic all the way,"

Lucas immediate sought out where the talking was coming from so he could see the Gym Leader for himself, and looked towards a group of surfers coming from the water. His jaw dropped in shock and outrage. The person they were addressing was the same surfer that had hit Lucas! Same tanned skin, same long, shaggy blue hair—though it was clinging to his face from the water—and the same oblivious, dopey expression as from earlier in the afternoon. Before he realized what he was doing the Trainer stomped his way towards the man, "You're Brawly?! You're the motherf%&$ing Gym Leader?!"

Once again it took the surfer a couple of seconds to put two and two together, "Oh hey, you're the dude from earlier. How's it going?"

"You run a _fighting type Gym_?!" Lucas continued in offended disbelief. The teen had encountered fighting type Trainers before and he could not believe that this flake was a Trainer, let alone a Leader. The Gym Leader he knew was a bit scatterbrained and shy, but she was always a disciplined fighter, as was every other Black Belt and Karate Girl he had ever encountered. They took their training and their art seriously, even if the rest of their personality was smug or obnoxious. This yokel hit Lucas because he wasn't watching how he was swinging his surfboard.

"Yup, that's me. Brawly, Leader of the Dewford Town Gym," the surfer smiled as he walked towards his pile of things on the beach and dried himself off with a towel.

"How? How is it possible that you're the Leader of a Gym? You closed the Gym to go surfing!" Lucas tiraded.

Brawly shrugged, "I don't do it all the time. Seriously bruh, you need to learn to relax, you'll live longer. The Gym will still be there tomorrow. The challenge will still exist. Peace, bruh, peace,"

"No, no, I'm not putting up with that. I'm going to challenge you right here, right now!" Lucas pulled a Pokeball off his belt and held the item threateningly in front of him.

"Sure, bruh. If challenging me right now is the only thing that'll mellow you out a bit, no problem," Brawly shrugged and grabbed a t-shirt and his Pokeball belt from his pile of things and pulled both items on. As the two made room for each other, a curious group of onlookers gathered around the two Trainers to watch the battle. The two opponents faced each other, Lucas with barely suppressed rage, Brawly with his calm, slightly vapid smile, "This is actually quite a nice change of pace from the Dojo. A battle in nature and the elements, the way Pokemon battles should really be,"

The teen confronted the other young man, "My name is Lucas and I'm from Cherrygrove City. Because of League rules I have to inform you that I am the current Champion of the Sinnoh League, and I am here to challenge you for a Gym Badge,"

Lucas' announcement of his title brought a murmur of appreciation from the crowd. Brawly himself gave a nod of approval before starting his own Leader speech, "I'm Brawly the Leader of the Dewford Town Gym. I specialize in fighting type Pokemon. While most people associate the type with brute force and hard attacks, I believe in the spiritual side of the martial arts. The finding of one's center and one's place in the universe. To move with the forces of nature like the waves that crash along the beach. I accept your challenge Lucas, and hope you learn to appreciate the power of the inner focus as much as the power of fighting,"

"Go! Swellow!" Lucas initiated the fight.

"Go! Hariyama!" Brawly's voice got louder as he announced his Pokemon, but the tone of his voice remained calm and laid back.

"Swellow, make this a quick fight! Use Wing Attack!" the punk commanded.

"Hariyama, Belly Drum, bruh," the surfing Leader ordered leisurely. The flying type careened into the larger monster, damaging it well, though the Hariyama's high defenses prevented a one-hit KO. In response the Pokemon started striking itself in the stomach, damaging it even worse than the bird Pokemon's attack had done.

"Hurry Swellow! Another Wing Attack will finish it!"

"Arm Thrust, Hariyama!" once again the bird Pokemon hit first, but despite the type advantage, and the low health of his opponent, the Swellow was unable to knock the other creature out. On the other hand, Hariyama caught the Swellow cleanly, and knocked the Pokemon out instantly.

Lucas snarled from the battle upset. By all account the Swellow should have won the round, but the teen overlooked Belly Drum's ability to max out the user's attack power. Type disadvantage meant nothing if attacks power could out calculate it. "Swellow, return! Go Bruce! Finish this round with Mud Slap!"

"Arm Thrust again, Hariyama," This time the round ended quickly as the Marshtomp knocked out the remaining health of the fighting type, but the teen knew this battle was far from over. Brawly pulled out his next Pokemon completely unfazed, "Go Machamp!"

The massive four armed Pokemon plunged into the sand and faced the ground type directly. "Mudslap again Bruce!"

"Machamp, use Focus Energy!" Brawly commanded. The fighting type took the full blow of the ground attack but responded by folding its four arms together and closing its eyes in concentration.

"Mudslap one more time Bruce!" Once again the water-and-ground Pokemon charged its opponent with a blast of dirt and water, pushing the other Pokemon closer to being knocked out, though its attack wasn't quite strong enough to deliver the final blow. This gave the opportunity the Gym Leader needed.

"Use Revenge, Machamp!" Once again one of the Leader's Pokemon wiped out one of Lucas' creatures in one move despite Lucas having the type advantage, the Machamp's attack managing to land a critical hit against the Marshtomp.

In that moment Lucas finally understand Brawly and his methods. He was so caught up with his stupid temper that he completely missed the seemingly hippy-dippy Leader's strategy. He also suddenly realized what a massive fool he had been. He could tell the blue-haired surfer's laid back attitude wasn't an act, but his mellow methods served a very significant purpose. By having such a relaxed approach to battling, he could take his time to build up his team's attack power and could play defensively, a strategy not often associated with fighting types. But because Lucas was in such a hurry to defeat Brawly and show him up for his earlier rudeness, he had fallen right into the Leader's trap. If he continued the way he was going, this man he grew to dislike so much would very soon win.

While Lucas would often let his temper and pride cloud his thinking, he was nothing if not adaptable. He would not permit the Leader to get under his skin anymore. "Go Beautifly!"

"Machamp! Inner Focus again!" Brawly ordered his Pokemon. Once again the fighting type took a meditative stance as it gathered its energy to unleash a critical hit on the following turn. This was what Lucas was waiting for.

"Beautifly! Use Encore!" Lucas ordered. For once in the battle Brawly looked mildly stunned. Now for the next few turns the Machamp would have no choice but to use Inner Focus again, losing the ability to follow up its power up attack with a physical blow. With the strategy set up Lucas unleashed the second part of his plan, "Beautifly return! Go! Grotle!"

The grass and ground turtle took its place on the field. Normally a boosted up fighting move would be devastating for the Pokemon, but with the Machamp trapped using the same move, Lucas now had time to use his Grotle to knock out his opponent. After two more moves where the fighting Pokemon helplessly repeated Inner Focus to no result, it finally careened defeated into the sand.

Now it was on to the final Pokemon. The crowd that had gathered around the fighters were roaring with cheers as some rooted for the Gym Leader while others cheered for his punk opponent. Now would be the deciding round as Lucas waited for Brawly's final Pokemon. If he had such a hard time fighting Brawly before he would have to especially pay attention now. Brawly seemed completely undisturbed by being brought down to his final Pokemon. He also didn't have that smug knowing look that many Leaders had as the brought out their secret weapon to devastate their challengers. He seemed to take all moves in stride, regarding his pitfalls and windfalls with equal ease. He pulled out his final Pokemon and summoned it to the field, "All right Medicham, let's end this and get back to the waves!"

Lucas studied the Pokemon carefully. This creature would be tricky as it not only was a fighting type, but had psychic attributes as well. And with the way Brawly battled, it was clear it would know all sorts of ways to improve its own stats before laying the hurt, "Grotle Return! Beautifly! I need you again!"

"Medicham, Calm Mind!" Brawly ordered.

"Beautifly! Encore!" Lucas responded.

"Medicham, use Detect!" Brawly immediately countered. Lucas' tactic would not pay off a second time. Just after finishing its meditation, the fighting-and-psychic type threw up its hands and created a shield of energy. Whatever moves that could have been used against it would fail for the turn. The bug Pokemon's attempt to block its attacks was blocked in return. Then the Leader switched from offense to defense, "Now use Hidden Power, Medicham!"

"Beautifly! Silverwind!" Lucas commanded his Pokemon to attack. Both monsters blasted each other with their respective powers. While the bug type managed to do some damage, the rock attribute of the other creature's Hidden Power was significant. "Silverwind again!"

"Confusion, Medicham!" The psychic move wasn't very effective against the Beautifly, but it didn't have to be. In the previous round the bug was all but knocked out, and even with the weaker move the butterfly-like creature crashed into the sand. Lucas gritted his teeth for his Pokemon's defeat but in that last move Lucas realized how he was going to win.

"Diablo! Let's finish this!" Lucas pulled the next Pokemon from his belt and summoned the snarling Mightyena to the field.

A few members of the crowd whispered in confusion as to why this Trainer would summon a clearly disadvantaged Pokemon to the field. Lucas ignored them, he knew exactly what he was doing. If Brawly seemed surprised or confused by his opponent's actions, he didn't show it, "Medicham! Calm Mind again!"

"Diablo! Sand attack!" Lucas commanded in reply. While the fighting Pokemon sat in meditation, Diablo started furiously kicking at the dunes of the beach, a cloud of particulates dissipated into the air, causing the sky to become slightly obscured.

"Medicham! Hidden Power!"

"Sand attack again!" As Diablo threw more and more sand into the air, the other creature sent the wave of rock energy towards the Mightyena, causing the wolf-like creature to go skidding across the beach. The hit had clearly been a significant one, but the Pokemon pulled himself to his feet, and shook off the damage as best it could. It looked back to his Trainer and awaited his next command, "Keep using Sand Attack, Diablo!"

"Use Calm Mind again, Medicham!"

"Sand attack!"

"Calm Mind!"

"Sand attack!"

"Hidden Power!" Once again the fighting type sent a wave of energy towards the Mightyena, but unlike the earlier attack, the wave got no where near Diablo. By now the sky was so full of sand the two Pokemon could barely see each other. Many members of the crowd were coughing, but things were going exactly like Lucas had wanted. Brawly called out for another Hidden Power attack.

"Now use Howl, Diablo!" Yet again the fighting Pokemon's move missed, which the Mightyena sat on the ground in front of his Trainer and let a haunting cry pierce the air. As the evening grew and sky was smogged over with the massive amounts of sand, it sent an eerie feeling through the crowd. Lucas and Brawly continued to exchange attacks. The Hidden Powers missing either because of the sand or the dark type's naturally high evasion while Diablo continued to cry out into the growing night. As the rounds dragged on, Lucas counted quietly to himself, Brawly continuing to command his Pokemon to hit the increasingly difficult to catch Mightyena. After several more rounds Lucas revealed the final part of his plan, "Diablo, now it's time to use Bite!"

For the first time in the match Brawly seemed genuinely taken aback. Through the cloud of sand and grit Diablo launched himself at the Medicham. Brawly called back, "Medicham, use Calm Mind, bruh!"

With that Lucas knew he had already won, the rest of the match nothing more than a formality. As Diablo chomped over and over again into the fighting Pokemon, Brawly kept calling out more Detect and Calm Mind moves. Pokemon only knew four battles moves, and after the fight with Beautifly Lucas learned what moves the Medicham knew. Balancing attacks was tricky. While knowing the two stat affecting moves let Brawly power up his Pokemon, it only left two slots for attacking moves. And with Diablo being immune to psychic types, it meant that Lucas only had to worry about Medicham's Hidden Power attack. With a limited amount of times the move could be used, once the attack was used up the Pokemon could do nothing more to damage his Mightyena.

After a few more rounds the sand finally cleared, and the Medicham lied collapsed on the beach. More whispers in the crowd and as people tried to understand what they had just seen. Brawly nodded approvingly, he seemed no more upset than he did before Lucas challenged him, "Nicely done, nicely done. You've beat me so you get the Knuckle Badge as well as the TM for Bulk Up. Like many of the other moves I've used, Bulk Up focuses on powering up the Pokemon by increasing attack and defense power," Lucas recalled his own exhausted Pokemon and went to shake his opponent's hand, "Also nice to see you've calmed down a bit, like I said before bruh, stressing yourself out that much will shorten your life,"

"Thanks for the badge, but I'm curious. How the hell can you not be the least bit upset that I beat you?" Lucas had to ask. While it was true that during the battle he had calmed down significantly, he still couldn't say he liked the flakey Leader, though he far more respected him.

"Zen, my man, zen. You can't let the little things get to you. That's what martial arts are all about, finding your center by finding your peace. I look at it this way: if I would have won, then I'd go down and surf some more of those tasty waves. I lost, so now I'm going to go down and surf more of those tasty waves. My Pokemon would have had more fun if they won, but they win more often than they lose. And it's the experience they enjoy more than anything. So now I surf, tomorrow I train and life goes on. Zen," Brawly explained.

"I don't think I could ever be as zen as you, but I still need to work on controlling my temper. Though I'm pretty proud of myself that I didn't deck you earlier today," Lucas joked.

"Nah, that was pretty uncool of me. I really am sorry about that even if my earlier apology wasn't what you wanted,"

"We're cool now, I pretty much took all my rage out during the match," with that the two men let go of each other's hands and said their goodbyes.

"Hang loose," Brawly said as he and his friends went back to surf the night waters.

"Stay metal," Lucas replied as he headed back to the Pokemon Center.


	52. Chapter 52 Skyler

Chapter 52: Skyler

After a rocky start Lucas was growing to enjoy the laid back comforts of Dewford Town. When he first arrived in town he had loathed every square inch of the place, a mood onset by a disastrous trip through Tentacool infested waters, then heightened by problems at the Pokemon Center. It wasn't until he faced the Gym Leader that both his temper exploded, as well as he learned to calm down a bit. Lucas met the town's Leader when Brawly had slammed into the Trainer with his surfboard after closing the Gym. Offended and infuriated, Lucas then challenged the Leader right on Dewford's beautiful beach. Their battle had been long and tough, and had forced the short-tempered teen to do some introspection, and the Trainer learned to respect, if not adopt, Brawly's zen philosophy of life and battle. While Lucas was still determined to get through the Hoenn League as quickly as possible, he decided spend a day exploring before moving on to the next challenge.

With three badges he was nearing the half-way point in this leg of his Journey. His next badge would be found in Mauville. While part of the reason he wished to breeze through the League was to get his next Championship and be one step closer to finally confronting his older brother John, the other reason was because he wanted to get to Lillycove City. Lillycove City was home to a Pokemon Coordinator named Ashley. Lucas had met Ashley almost a year earlier outside of Hearthome City, helping her against a group of Team Cosmic grunts that had attempted to steal her Pokemon. Lucas had become intensely infatuated with her, and even though she did not reciprocate his feelings, he still greatly looked forward to seeing her again.

Outside of the beach and the town center of the local cantina, Dewford Town's other main draw was the Granite Cave, a tunnel structure home to many kinds of unique Pokemon Lucas had not yet encountered. It was also here that Lucas would have another important encounter of a different kind. Hours of exploring lead him to capturing his own Makuhita, Meditite, Mawile and the mysterious Sableye. And as he continued to wander around the cave seeking rare items or any other important Pokemon he may have missed, he came across a Pokemon battle. A Trainer was battling a wild Lairon that had been disturbed from its feeding. Lucas watched in awe as the Trainer commanded his Pokemon to attack the Lairon. The Pokemon was a thing of beauty, a serpentine Dragonair that undulated and whipped around its opponent was a dancer's grace and power. But more than the Pokemon, Lucas couldn't take his eyes off of the Trainer.

Lucas was bisexual. And while he mostly was a connoisseur of the giggly and jiggly wonder that was the female body; lean, tall men with handsome faces and confident smiles activated the same part of the tattooed teen's brain that made him behave like a newborn giraffe: physically and verbally tripping over himself as he tried to express his feelings. The Trainer commanding the elegant Dragonair had spikey, sky blue hair, long angular face on a long, slim neck with the kind of, lean arms, legs and tight torso associated with a swimmer's body. He was dressed in a beige tank top with light gray shorts with cuffs on his arms that accentuated his best features. Awe and Lucas' attraction-based paralysis kept the teen where he stood, watching transfixed as the handsome Trainer gently praised his victorious Pokemon and then continued deeper into the cave. It wasn't until he was out of sight that Lucas realized his Eevee Gizmo was trying to get his attention, and that his heart was pounding in his chest.

Later that day Lucas stood in line at the crowded Pokemon Center in Dewford Town. After catching an Aron, the teen was ambushed by a Golbat that had poisoned and confused poor Gizmo. The small normal type twitched in his Trainer's arms as Lucas shifted his weight from one foot to another, tired from waiting in the Center's line for more than an hour. Other Trainers griped over the holdup, even on crowded days never having had to wait more than fifteen minutes to get their Pokemon checked out. Lucas was wondering what was wrong, and starting to get worried that it was taking so long to get his Eevee healed. As the tattooed teen concentrated on his Pokemon, a voice from behind snapped him back to attention, "Hey, is your Eevee okay?"

It was only the unmatched devotion and love for his Pokemon that prevented Lucas from dropping his wounded normal type onto the ground. When Lucas turned around to answer the stranger's question, he found himself face to face with the Trainer from Granite Cave. If from a distance the Trainer made Lucas' heart race, now seeing the young man close up made the poor teen nearly shut down. Up close Lucas could get a better look at the other teen's face: his angular cheekbones and thin chin, his narrow nose and almond-shaped, steel-gray eyes fill with concern and a confident, friendly smile. Lucas desperately tried to answer the young man's question, but at the moment, he had forgotten what words were and how they worked. His reply was nullified by the mixed blessing of the lights of the Center suddenly shutting off. A groan of frustration rippled through the Center.

"Not again!" the Trainer in front of Lucas roared.

"This has happened before? I only just got to Dewford Town so I wouldn't know," the blue-haired Trainer now addressed the frustrated man in front of Lucas, much to the teen's relief.

"At least three times a day since I got here. And I've been in Dewford Town for almost a week now. The generators will kick on in a second, but every time it happens the Pokemon Center has to reset a bunch of systems, immediately check on the critical condition Pokemon and it slows the line down even worse," the Trainer explained irritably.

Just as the irritated Trainer said, the lights flickered back on a minute later. An announcement came on over the crackling PA system, "Attention Trainers. We apologize for the inconvenience, but due to the blackout certain systems vital to the health and welfare of your Pokemon must be reset before additional treatment can be administered. I am afraid wait times for seeing the nurse will be extended by an additional fifteen minutes,"

Now distracted by a new problem, Lucas finally rediscovered his power of speech, "Wait a second, I do remember hearing an announcement like that yesterday when I first checked into the Center's lodgings. It took a long time to get everything settled, but no where near as badly as today,"

"I guess it's like a traffic jam, every time things get backed up it take longer because in addition to everyone already here having to wait, new people come in as well," the blue-haired Trainer thought aloud.

"Yeah, but it's gotten so bad that some of my friends have been relying on the medicines you get from Pokemarts instead of going to the Center," the Trainer ahead of Lucas continued.

"That's a dangerous thing to do. The medicines are good if you're stuck on the road or in a real pinch, but they aren't a substitute for care from a trained professional," the blue-haired Trainer said seriously. Once again he looked down at the shivering Eevee in Lucas' arms, "But if we're going to be stuck in line for over an hour, it might not be such a bad idea to use an antidote on that Pokemon just to be on the safe side,"

The handsome Trainer reached into his bag and pulled out the anti-poison spray Lucas had run out of. He spritzed Gizmo several times before the Eevee stopped trembling, shook his head and opened his eyes. The taller Trainer patted the Pokemon gently on the head and smiled kindly at Lucas. The tattooed teen screamed at himself for acting like a bonehead and stammered out, "Th-thanks a lot,"

"Not a problem. I'm Skyler, by the way," the blue-haired Trainer offered out his hand in greeting, "It seems like we're going to be line buddies for a while so we might as well get to be on a first-name basis,"

"My name's Lucas," the teen blurted in response. It could have gone far worse because after touching the other man's hand he had momentarily forgotten what his name actually was.

"So what are you doing in Dewford Town, Lucas?" Skyler seemed oblivious of Lucas' awkwardness or simply chose to ignore it, and the two of them continued to talk as the line crept forward.

"I just got my badge. I'm here in Hoenn trying to get the Championship," While Lucas was originally incredibly nervous around the sexy Trainer, he was quickly being put at ease around Skyler. He wasn't just attractive, he seemed like a genuinely friendly and kind guy.

"I take it that means you're not originally from Hoenn?"

"Nah, I just came from Sinnoh recently, but I'm originally from Johto,"

"No way! I'm from Johto too! Where from?"

"Cherrygrove City,"

"I'm from Blackthorn City," Skyler replied, "I'm actually in Hoenn because I want to catch some rare dragon types. I'm trying to see if I can catch the legendary Rayquazza. I heard a rumor that the Granite Cave actually linked to some old ruins where Rayquazza might be, but that proved to be a bust,"

As the two Trainers continued to talk about Training and Pokemon, they completely failed to realize they had finally made it to the front of the line, "Welcome to the Pokemon Center, how may we help your Pokemon today?"

Though the nurse tried her best to be cheerful, she couldn't mask the worn look on her face. Her complexion was ashen and there were circles under her eyes. Clearly the blackouts were causing a tremendous strain. Lucas returned Gizmo to his Pokeball and handed his team over to the nurse, "Man, it looks like things are really bad in here. What's even causing the Center's blackouts?"

"It's not just the Pokemon Center, it's the whole island. The blackouts affect all of Dewford Town but the Pokemon Center and the human medical center down the road have the hardest time dealing with it. It's not just these lines, we're doing everything in our power to make sure the Pokemon here in critical condition don't get affected. We have the generators but they won't last much longer. All these power surges eventually fry them, and we have no idea when new generators from the mainland will get here," the nurse confessed.

"Oh man, that's horrible. If this keeps up Pokemon and people could genuinely get hurt by this," Lucas realized sadly.

"Excuse me, nurse, do you think there's anything we can do about it?" Skyler asked.

The haggard nurse thought for a moment, "I have no idea, maybe if you talk to the mayor you could get somewhere. Not that we have so far..."

"Well, it can't hurt to try," Skyler stated, "What do you say, Lucas, you in?"

Lucas, of course, was entirely for the idea of getting to the bottom of the island's blackouts. The teen cared tremendously for Pokemon, and had the other Trainer not suggested it, he would have gone and investigated for himself, but Skyler suggesting the two work together caught the boy uncomfortably off guard, "You mean do this together?"

"Absolutely. I can tell you're as worried about this as I am. I saw how concerned you look in line, and two heads are better than one," Skyler added thoughtfully, "Unless you're one of those guys who works better by himself. If that's the case, don't let me cramp your style,"

"No! No! I'm all about team effort!" Lucas replied over-eagerly. He cleared his throat and readjusted his tone, "If what the nurse is saying is true and the mayor is being evasive about the situation we could try to play both sides and get to the bottom of this,"

"Thank you so much, you two," the nurse said gratefully as she handed Lucas' team back, "If we can stop these blackouts it'll mean the world to the people and Pokemon here,"

The mayor's home wasn't far for the island's main cantina, and was totally unremarkable from the rest of the city's houses. Lucas tried his best not to act awkwardly around Skyler, but failed miserably as he tripped and faceplanted on the steps of the mayor's porch. He immediately tried to redeem himself by banging loudly on the mayor's door. The man who answered seemed more like a hippy than a politician, with long graying hair and a floral Hawaiian shirt but his attitude changed quickly when Skyler started talking, "Hi there, we wanted to ask you a couple of questions about the city's blackouts,"

The man scowled and threatened to close the door. Only Lucas shoving his steel-toed boots into the doorjamb stopped him, "Are you a couple of reporters?"

"Nope, just some concerned travelers," Skyler continued in his friendly, open manner.

"The situation is being handled!" the mayor said nervously. He was now desperately trying to shove Lucas' shoe out of the way so he could close the door.

"Listen! These blackouts are seriously affecting the Pokemon Center. If they keep up then the Center's generators are going to blow and until they get replaced a bunch of people—and Pokemon—could get seriously hurt. If you know something about it, you better start talking!" Lucas snarled.

"I'm done talking!" Normally it would take heaven and earth to move Lucas and his densely muscled body out of the way, but a surprise body-check from the mayor caught the teen off guard and he went flying off the porch, giving the politician a chance to finally slam the door in the Trainers' faces.

"Well, that went well," Lucas quipped sarcastically.

"You alright?" Skyler winced as he watched the other teen brush sand off of his vest and hair.

"Oh, I'm fine. Pissed off, but fine. But that guy is going to get it. I'm going to give him an enema with that stupid shirt of his," Lucas snarled as he looked back to the mayor's door. Much to his surprise, Skyler helped pull him to his feet. The tattooed teen managed to croak out a squeaking, "Thank you,"

"That nurse wasn't kidding about not getting an answer out of that guy. Confronting him was, unfortunately, the only part of this plan I thought out. Any ideas on what to do next?"

Before Lucas could answer a familiar feminine voice chirped from behind the Mohawk-bearing Trainer, "Ah Lucas, there you are! Finally ready to give me my interview?"

The reporter Gabby and her cameraman Ty stood on the edge of the sandy road, beaming a triumphant smile. Lucas rolled his eyes and muttered to himself, "This is just perfect,"

"Wow, who are they?" Skyler said with some surprise as the woman came charging towards Lucas in her hectic, over-the-top manner.

Lucas let out a sigh of defeat, "Gabby, Ty, meet my new friend Skyler. Skyler, meet my stalkers. How did you find me anyway?"

"Oh Lucas, it wasn't hard. It was obvious that you'd be heading to Dewford Town since the Rusturf Tunnel was still closed. And you didn't exactly make yourself inconspicuous with that display on the beach yesterday," Gabby teased, "So where would you prefer we do the interview? Sit down at a restaurant? Doing it here is fine, too,"

A sudden, brilliant idea struck the teen, "Actually, I think I might have a bigger story for you than just me. For the past few days there have been some really terrible rolling blackouts affecting the entire island. We tried to ask the mayor about it and he shoved me off his porch and slammed the door in our faces,"

"Is that so?" Gabby's eyes glinted greedily, "This might be related to the tunnel closure in Rustboro..."

"Could be," Lucas encouraged.

His idea couldn't have worked better than if he had planned it from the very beginning. Within seconds the hounding journalist was pounding on the mayor's door, and shoving a microphone in his face when he answered, "Hi, I'm Gabby from Hoenn Today. I'd like to get your statement about the Dewford Town blackouts and the cover up surrounding them. Is it true you refused to comment on the situation to a Pokemon League representative?!"

"P-pokemon League representative? What are you talking about?" The mayor began sweating profusely.

"Didn't you recognize him? This is Lucas, the current Champion of the Sinnoh League, making him an official representative of the Pokemon League. By refusing to answer his questions you were effectively refusing to cooperate with the League, which is of course highly suspicious. What exactly are you trying to hide?" Gabby continued to badger in her chipper tone.

"Is that true?" The mayor blurted. Lucas pulled out the gold badge with the word 'Champion' and waved it in front of the man with a smile. Skyler looked over at the badge himself and mouthed 'wow' to his new companion. The mayor bit his lip, slumped his shoulders and finally opened the door with a grunt, "All right, I'll tell you what's going on—but _off _the record," he raised his finger warningly to the reporter and waved the group in.

"How come you didn't bring that up before?" Skyler whispered to Lucas as the went into the man's house.

Lucas felt himself blush not just from being close to Skyler again, but from genuinely feeling foolish, "Honestly, I didn't know I could do that. I guess membership has its perks,"

The mayor invited the group to sit down and began explaining the problem, "Because Dewford Town is so small we don't have our own power plant. Instead, all our power comes from buried cables that connect through the mainland to here. For the past couple of weeks or so we've noticed that the cables have been destroyed. We've had teams constantly out fixing them, but after a day or so the cables just get destroyed again,"

"So you're saying that Dewford Town is being sabotaged?!" Gabby asked excitedly.

The mayor shook his head, "That's what we thought at first as well. That this was a prank or the result of someone's grudge—especially after the second time we had to repair the cables. So we had a group doing surveillance to see if we could catch the culprit. It turns out it wasn't a person, it was a Pokemon,"

"What!" Gabby gasped. A murmur of disbelief echoed through the room. Another overwhelming feeling of deja vu washed over Lucas. He had encountered a situation like this before. He only hoped that what he assumed was happening was just him overreacting.

"That's not the worst part. We had our Gym Leader Brawly go after the Pokemon and chase it away. And he did. But the next time the cables were torn into, it was done by an entirely different set of Pokemon,"

"Could it be that the cables are somehow bothering the Pokemon? Were they installed recently?" Gabby continued.

"No. Those cables are over thirty years old and most of the Pokemon around here are fighting and rock types, electricity was never an issue, even when the cables were first installed. Something is causing the Pokemon to act out and attack the power lines and we can't figure out what or how. Lucas, I'm sorry for how I acted earlier, but if you really were sent by the Pokemon League the people of Dewford Town really need your help. We need you to find out what's causing the Pokemon's behavior," the mayor asked the teen seriously.

"I'll do it. Even if you didn't want me to I'd still want to help," Lucas nodded, "So where are the cables being damaged?"

"Deep in Granite Cave,"


	53. Chapter 53 Mission in Granite Cave

Chapter 53: Mission in Granite Cave

Lucas stood in front of the Pokemon Center's PC, grinding his teeth as he waited for the system to boot. A series of rolling blackouts were affecting the island of Dewford Town, and with the Pokemon Center running almost exclusively on back-up generators, all the systems the facility normally provided became slow and unreliable. But this was part of the reason why Lucas was at the PC now. After talking to city's mayor with a little prodding from busy-body reporter Gabby, the teen Trainer learned that the blackouts were being caused by Pokemon attacking power lines buried in Granite Cave. Since coming to Hoenn he had chosen to use a lower level team to challenge the League, but now Lucas knew he had to rely on his older, more powerful Pokemon to help in this mission. He had a nagging suspicion he knew what was causing the behavior changes, and desperately hoped he was wrong. But if he was right, he would need all the power he could get.

Accompanying the Trainer was the reporter Gabby, hungry for a scoop, her largely quiet and affable cameraman Ty and Skyler. Skyler was a Trainer Lucas first saw from afar in Granite Cave, only to meet face to face in the Pokemon Center's line. The two quickly became friends as they chatted in line, but more than that Lucas found himself deeply attracted to the taller, slightly older teen Trainer, a problem that could quickly turn into a liability. For as brash, outspoken, and often rude the tattooed Trainer could be, around people he was attracted to his brain seemed to always turn off. While Skyler's kind, outgoing personality made him easier to talk to than other people Lucas had crushes on, he still found himself acting idiotically.

After several tense minutes where the PC threatened to fail, Lucas finally swapped out his team. Deciding to only keep his Mightyena Diablo from his new lineup, the teen added Hotrod, his Charizard, Franky, his Gyrados, Luna, his Lopunny and Donna, his Espeon. Donna was Gizmo's mate, and after weeks of not seeing each other, the two Eevee type Pokemon were thrilled to see one and other. With Lucas' lineup finalized, he left the center to meet his team. As expected, Gabby was practically a wound ball of impatience, raring to go and find the truth behind the mysterious events of Dewford Town. Ty double checked his equipment and Skyler let out a friendly wave when he spotted the shorter teen.

"We finally ready?" Gabby asked eagerly.

Lucas nodded curtly and added, "We are, but I gotta warn you guys. We have no idea what we are dealing with, so stay alert and watch out for anything out of the ordinary,"

"I'm the best investigative journalist in the Region, I'm ready for anything," the woman smirked.

"Lead the way, Champ!" Skyler said affably, which made Lucas blush slightly.

With all preparations finally finished, the party headed to Granite Cave. Like Lucas' last visit the day before, things started out ordinarily. There were a few random encounters with the cave's rock and fighting Pokemon, and they were constantly ambushed by Zubat, which was the way of caves of in the Pokemon world. Using the directions the mayor had given them, the group headed deeper into the caverns towards the buried power lines built decades ago.

The group headed down a tunnel that split two ways. It was clear that even before the modern industry of man that the caves had been used for as long as people inhabited the islands. One fork that split off showed signs of ancient runes and a marked path for olden believers of a far off time. Skyler commented on it, "This is the way I went yesterday when I was checking out those old Rayquazza rumors. This is also near abouts where I fought a Lairon,"

"So then this other path is where the cables go," Lucas concluded.

As the two Trainers strategized on where to go, Gabby motioned for Ty to start rolling as she began narrating their adventure, "This is Gabby with Hoenn Today investigating the mysterious blackouts in Dewford Town. After an evasive interview with the town's mayor, Hoenn Today has learned that these events are not natural, or even accidental, but caused by Pokemon sabotage. I'm here today with current Sinnoh Champion and Pokemon League representative Lucas to discover the cause behind the Pokemon's odd change in behavior. We have been in Granite Cave for several hours, and so far, nothing out of the ordinary has happened. Was the mayor telling the truth, or is there an even more sinister conspiracy at work?"

As the group walked down the correct fork and Gabby continued her commentary, a loud rumbling came in front of them. A pair of raging Lairon came charging down the tunnel. Ty whirled his camera towards the Pokemon and called out to the Trainers. Skyler and Lucas spun around just in time to avoid being gored by the stampeding steel types.

"Go Celes!" Skyler cried out as he summoned his beautiful Dragonair to the field.

"Franky, show time!" Lucas roared as he threw his own Pokeball to the fray.

"Nice Gyrados," Skyler said with a whistle.

"Amazing Dragonair, I've never seen one in real life," Lucas returned the compliment. The two Lairon turned their raging attention to the Pokemon combatants, both trying to charge the water and dragon beasts.

"Celes, use Flamethrower!" Skyler commanded.

"Hydropump, Franky!" the two Pokemon obeyed their Trainers without hesitation. Both Lairon roared in pain and fury at the attacks and rather than risk further damage ran from battle. With the fight finished the Gyrados turned on his Trainer and charged. Skyler leapt out of the way with a start while Lucas greeted the rampaging Pokemon with open arms. The Trainer was knocked from his feet with a fierce nuzzle, "I know, I know Franky, it's been too long since I last saw you. You're a good boy,"

Skyler watched in awe as Lucas scratched the sea monster's belly and carefully approached. The Gyrados looked at the blue-haired Trainer curiously before headbutting the newcomer as well, "I've never seen a Gyrados so happy-tempered before. I mean, I have my own Gyrados and while he isn't vicious, he's not exactly a cuddlebug either. It's extraordinary,"

Lucas' heart jumped in his throat again as the compliment washed over him, "Um well, I guess I treated him especially well as a Magikarp,"

While the two Trainers were praising one and other, Gabby stepped forward and made an observation, "That was...bizarre," the teens looked at her and then at Franky, "No, no, I don't mean the Gyrados, but yeah, we're going to talk about him during the interview, Lucas. But Lairon are supposed to be fairly uncommon in Granite Cave, but two to be together like that. That isn't supposed to usually happen,"

"How do you know?" Lucas asked seriously. The point was sounding alarm bells in his head again.

"While you were busy fiddling with the Center's PC, I was calling the home office for some research info for the cave. Lairon aren't common, and they usually aren't in this part of the cave,"

"Now that you mention it, that Lairon I fought charged me from this part of the tunnel," Skyler added.

Lucas recalled Franky and called out the party, "Let's keep going. We don't know what else is in here,"

Aside from some vicious Golbat, the trip down the tunnel was largely quiet and the cables were just ahead. Transistors every hundred feet or so marked were most of the cable remained buried but in the deeper, wider part of the tunnel they found what they were looking for. The marking transistors were thrown around, and the ripped cables lied out in the open like dead snakes. The group approached the wires carefully, not sure if some of the cords were still live. Skyler took out a flashlight and let out other impressed whistle as he took stock of the scene.

"The mayor wasn't kidding, this is definitely the work of Pokemon, and powerful ones at that. And from the looks of things, the Pokemon that did this were seriously pissed off," Skyler explained.

"Think whatever did that is still around?" Lucas asked.

"Hard to say, but I hope not for our sakes. These cables are buried several feet. Not only that, but you see this, they weren't chewed through, they were ripped. And these cables are three-inch diameter copper, not exactly easy to tear," Skyler continued.

The group huddled together from pure instinct, watching their surroundings even more carefully than before to avoid the monstrosity that caused the damage. As the group stood around in anxious anticipation, Ty made his first direct comment towards the group. It caught Lucas so off guard he didn't recognize at first who was speaking, "Uh guys, you need to take a look at this," With his the light from his camera he pointed to near one of the transistors that was pulled out, from it was a secondary cable.

"What is it?" Gabby asked her cameraman.

"It's a junction. It diverts power from the mainlines to somewhere else. Normally you don't see these until above ground when the electricity is split up to deliver it to people's houses and stuff. I don't think this was put by anyone from Dewford Town,"

"How could anyone have missed that?" Gabby continued.

"Very easily. These cables go on for miles. I don't think the Pokemon keep messing up the exact same place, just the general area. Junctions like this can go undetected for years, that's how people in poor countries steal electricity," Ty finished.

"We're going to follow the junction. Wherever it's going, we'll find our answer," Lucas stated.

The smaller cable proved to be harder to follow that the big transistors. They had minimal light and when they flashed their light in the wrong direction they were immediately ambushed by Golbat. At one point Gabby and Ty had to have their own Pokemon in the fight. As the fights got more frequent Lucas observed that the Pokemon were getting much stronger. Too strong for the area. Those warning bells in Lucas' head just kept getting louder. The cable finally lead to a dead end in the cavern wall. As Lucas and his team looked around the area, Skyler kept clutching his head and rubbing the bridge of his nose. Gizmo, who had been sitting on Lucas' shoulder as watch and Diablo who had followed behind on foot kept shaking their heads.

"Anyone else's ears ringing?" Skyler asked weakly.

Gabby and Ty just looked at each other and shrugged, but Lucas' gut was telling him he was close, "This is a false wall, look for the way to get it open. The answer is on the other side,"

Gabby frowned and narrowed her eyes at the Champion, "You know what's going on, don't you?"

"I have no idea what you're talking about," Lucas responded emotionlessly as he tapped his fingers on the walls and wiggled surrounding rocks in attempts to trigger a door.

The reporter snorted, "Oh Lucas honey, I don't say I'm the best reporter in the Region because I'm cocky, I say it because I'm _extremely_ observant. First you switch out your new team for your old heavy hitters even though the Pokemon of Granite Cave don't go above level 20. And lo and behold we've been running into Golbat and Graveller about level 40. You have us follow the secondary cable without even second guessing, and now you are _sure_ that this is a false door. There's instinct and then there's being psychic, and I only believe in psychic Pokemon, not people,"

Before Lucas was forced to come up with an answer Ty stepped back and pressed his foot against one of the rocks on the opposite side of the cable. Three feet away from where the cable ended, the wall rumbled and a heavy steel door with a false rock front went up. Ty with his lighted camera stepped in first and as the group went in Lucas' ears start to buzz as well. At that moment he knew his worst suspicions had been confirmed.

"Oh my God..." Gabby gasped as she looked around the room. It was a dimly lit laboratory filled with tables and empty cages, "This is Gabby with Hoenn Today. After following the Champion into the cave my cameraman and I had discovered an illegal junction in the power lines. Having followed it, we have discovered this secret lab behind a false wall deep in Granite Cave. As to who this lab belonged to, and what was its purpose we are yet to uncover,"

Gizmo and Diablo staggered as they moved and Skyler looked like he was about to be sick. Meanwhile, Lucas' own head was splitting with an all too familiar pain. He ignored it as he set about finding the familiar device. Gabby started going through the scattered papers left behind. Whoever was using the lab had clearly abandoned it in a hurry. There was the residue of evaporated coffee in mugs by microscopes and several chairs had been overturned in addition to the scattered papers. Shriveled tissue samples rotted in trays and several bones peeked out of a trashcan marked with the bio hazard label. Lucas did his best not to think about the unfortunate Pokemon these samples belonged to. His goal was to find the device without Gabby figuring out what was happening. He didn't have much time, Gabby was already suspicious.

Suddenly a seismic rumbling tore through the lab. A wall right behind the reporter and cameraman exploded as a colossal Agron burst into the lab. Its eyes were wild and seemed in pain, but worse was the monstrosity seemed twice as big as an Agron was supposed to be. The behemoth verged on Godzilla level proportions. As Lucas edged towards the back, Diablo collapsed to the ground, thrashing and snarling like he was having a seizure. In fear, Ty and Gabby threw out their own Pokemon to face the Agron, a Magneton and an Exploud.

"No!" Lucas cried out but it was already too late. Within a split second the two Pokemon went from preparing to defend their Trainers to twitching and turning against them. He had seen this once before, on Iron Island in Sinnoh when the Trainer Riley's magnificent Lucario turned against him. All attempts to hide his mission went out the window in favor of protecting human and Pokemon life. He started tearing through the cabinets. Skyler, suffering the same killer migraine that was plaguing Lucas weakly tried to come to the aid of the journalists but the tattooed teen cried out to him, "Skyler, you gotta help me!"

The blue-haired teen hesitated with his Pokeball in hand, but turned to the frantic shorter boy and put the Pokemon away. For now, Ty and Gabby were on their own, and heavily, heavily distracted. He swallowed his pain and ran over to Lucas who was desperately ripping open doors and shelves and throwing the lab into further disarray, "What are we looking for?!"

"Box thing, glowing green lights. You'll know it when you see it because it will make you want to puke," Lucas stated. Suddenly Gizmo started shrieking wildly. Falling off of his Trainer's shoulder and when he recovered started chomping at Lucas' leather boot.

"Lucas, your Eevee is-"

"Don't worry about him!" Lucas continued even though the normal-type had managed to grab the muscle of his calf and his leg was now bleeding. With the biting Pokemon clamped to his leg, the tattooed Trainer grabbed a crowbar and started smashing on the last, locked door in the lab. Skyler grabbed some other heavy tool and helped the other young man.

The door swung open and their prize was inside. The box was the size of a coffin with eerie green lights blinking all over it. The high, whistling noise that was torturing both boys was the most intense now. Gizmo let go in a start and started to convulse. Both Lucas and Skyler vomited from the intensity of the pain. Skyler leaned against a wall weakly, trying desperately not to collapse, "Now what do we do?"

Lucas finished his own bout of retching and wiped his mouth, "Smashy, smashy,"

With the last of their strength the two teens beat the glowing box with their implements. They pounded the device until it sparked and exploded. With the device dead the sound instantly stopped, and mercifully, the pain with it. Both boys collapsed to the ground and struggled to catch their breaths. As they waited for their strength to return, Lucas forced himself to sit up. He took one of the pieces from the broken device and slipped it in his pocket.

After an unknown amount of time their haze finally cleared. Lucas pulled himself up and then collapsed as he realized his leg was cut worse than he had thought. Skyler came to his aid and supported him. Only sheer exhaustion stopped the smaller teen from falling to the ground in surprise. Gizmo came to and rubbed at his muzzle, not understanding the substance that was in his mouth. When he saw his Trainer's bleeding leg he ran over and begin licking the wound, whimpering small, remorseful 'viis'. Lucas called to his Pokemon reassuringly, "Hey buddy, I know it wasn't you, don't feel so guilty,"

The two Trainers moved back into the main lab to view the damage. Diablo got himself up and shook out his fur, though he was still wobbling slightly as he walked back to Lucas. Gabby and Ty were barricaded behind an overturned table, and to their credit, Ty got the entire fight on film. Their Pokemon looked around in confusion, before wandering back to their Trainers' sides, the reporters not sure how to react to their previously traitorous Pokemon. The massive Agron shook itself off before pulling its head back out of the cave and wandering back into the caverns.

With the Pokemon safely gone, and their own creatures back in their balls, Ty and Gabby finally escaped their refuge and turned to the two Trainers. Gabby stormed towards the injured Lucas, "Okay kid, no more cute stuff. You know what's going on. The world has the right to know, and I sure as heck have the right to know why I almost died,"

"This lab was set up to do experiments with ultrasonic devices, and I imagine that that Agron was an experiment that went 'Jurassic Park' on its creators' asses. Ultrasonic devices mess with Pokemon minds and make them artificially more powerful. It also causes immense pain to Pokemon that can hear them, or to young people like ourselves who have better ranges of hearing than geezers like you. Skyler's hearing is better than mine because he hasn't been as many heavy metal concerts as I have, which is why he started getting sick first. Steel, rock and ground Pokemon get affected the worst, followed by Pokemon with sensitive hearing like your Exploud, which is why it turned on you when you summoned it. The nearby Pokemon kept ripping the cables to try to stop the device because it cut off power to the lab. Each time the people from Dewford fixed it, the junction got power again and the device started back up. This time around they ripped the wrong side, they cut off power to the city, but not the lab," Lucas stated matter-of-factly.

"You seem to know a lot about this. Whose lab is this? How do you know about all this?" Gabby further probed.

"You'll probably want to get this footage to your station soon. You never know when another journalist might show up. And I'll probably end up telling him what happened as well," Lucas said casually.

The journalist blanched at the threat of her story getting scooped, "Ty! Let's go! We've got to get this stuff to the station and edited! Now!" she turned back to Lucas, "Oh, and don't think you got out of our interview, you might have sidetracked me but I'm stubborn,"

"So I've noticed,"

Using Escape Ropes the group headed out of Granite Cave. Skyler took Lucas to the medical center to get stitches for his legs and then to the Pokemon Center to have their teams checked out. They sent a message out to the mayor and within the day the power lines were fixed again, this time to stay fixed. After a few days to make sure an infection didn't take hold, Lucas came back to the Pokemon Center to find that Skyler was still in town.

"How's the leg?" Skyler asked as he saw Lucas still limping slightly.

"I'm fine, but why are you still here? I figured now that the Pokemon and the Pokemon Center are safe you'd be back on your mission to find that legendary Pokemon," Lucas said with some surprise.

Skyler looked sheepishly at the Mohawked teen, "Well, actually I was hoping to talk to you again,"

Lucas almost missed the chair he sat down on, bumping his tailbone on the hard edge and putting too much pressure on his still injured calf. "Go on," his voice cracked, much to his embarrassment.

"Well, I don't know if you know this, but you're kinda a badass. The way you handled everything in the cave. Not everyone can puke their guts out with a migraine and still have the sense to smash some weird doohickey. And I don't know if you agree, but we make a really good team," Skyler smiled, "So I was wondering if you wanted to travel together. Safety in numbers and all that. I know you're doing the League but my Rayquazza hunt won't interfere,"

Lucas had spent most of his Journey traveling alone. It wasn't even something he thought about much. He was never truly lonely because he had his Pokemon, but the short times he had traveled with the snarky and grim Morgan had actually been pretty fun. And the idea of spending so much time with the sexy Skyler had its own set of appeals. As well as its own set of hazards.

The blue-haired Trainer seemed crestfallen at Lucas' hesitation, "I mean, I get it if you don't. You're a Champion and everything so I get if you're worried I'll slow you down. Either way it was cool to meet and fight with you. Maybe we'll cross paths again some day,"

"No, no! It'd be great to have someone to travel with. Nice to have the company!" Lucas blurted out more eagerly than he intended.

"Then to partnership," Skyler offered out his hand.

"To partnership," Lucas took the other man's hand and shook it. As he clasped Skyler's hand part of him wanted to shout from the rooftops. The other part wanted to scream.


	54. Chapter 54 The Cursed Ship

Chapter 54: The Cursed Ship

It was finally, finally time to leave Dewford Town. Lucas had ended up staying in the island town far longer than he had planned. After the nightmare of a trip getting there, he had only wanted to stay a day, but because of circumstance he ended up staying almost a week. After defeating the Gym Leader he decided to explore the Granite Cave. Afterwards, he had learned that rolling blackouts affecting the island were being caused by Pokemon sabotage of power lines buried deeply in the cave. With the determined reporter Gabby, her cameraman Ty and his new friend Skyler they found an abandoned lab with an ultrasonic device causing the Pokemon immense pain and to tear the power lines in attempt to help themselves. The device was destroyed, Gabby got a scoop, Lucas got injured by Gizmo and Skyler and Lucas decided to travel together for the remainder of Lucas' Journey.

This proved to be a mixed blessing. On one hand, Skyler had proven to be a loyal friend and a powerful ally. On the other, Lucas found himself deeply attracted to the taller, older teen. The tattooed teen knew this could prove to be a problem. As long as he was attracted to Skyler, Lucas would continue to trip mentally and physically, but telling the other young man his feelings would be problematic. Generally men were not flattered to find that other men were attracted to them and Skyler gave no indication that he was attracted to Lucas as well. As far as the dragon Trainer was concerned, they were just good, platonic friends. And for Lucas, that could be enough, even with Skyler's sexy legs and brain melting smile.

With the threat in Granite Cave over, Lucas switched his team back out for his Hoenn group and prepared to take the next step. Next on the agenda was going back to Slateport City, the town Lucas originally arrived at, in order to head north and get to Mauville for his next badge. Like travel in most of Hoenn, it required going over water. Ferries came weekly instead of daily in the small town of Dewford, where most of the traffic came from cargo deliveries, and rides with other boats were hard to catch. That meant that getting to Slateport required going back into the Tentacool and Tentacruel infested waters that made his initial trip the Dewford such a headache.

Lucas stared glumly at the horizon line while standing on the beach. Skyler came up behind him and clapped him cheerfully on the shoulder, "Ready to shove off, partner?"

"Ready as I'll ever be," Lucas grumbled in reply.

"What's the matter? Do you get seasick or something? Surfing on a Pokemon is amazing. The sky, the water,"

"The Tentacool," Lucas finished. Skyler gave the other boy an odd look, "I reeeeally don't like Tentacool,"

"Small price to pay for being a Pokemon Trainer, just a fact of life like mosquitoes and Zubat. So how would you rather travel? My Pokemon or yours. I'll be using the Gyrados I was telling you about,"

"Probably smarter if we use separate Pokemon and just travel together,"

"Fair enough, and I'll go first so most of the Tentacool bother me," Skyler reached to his belt and pulled off a Pokeball, "Go! Gyrados!"

The sea monster-like creature appeared in the surf and lowered its head to its Trainer. Like Skyler had mentioned in Granite Cave, he too had the water-and-flying type, but unlike Lucas' own Franky, this Pokemon seemed distant and stoic, more like his Charizard Hotrod. The other teen then grabbed at his own Pokeball and summoned his Wailmer, "Blobby Bob!"

The spherical Pokemon bounced up and down in the waves and waited for his Trainer to mount. Lucas approached and called to Gizmo to climb his shoulder. Since the battle in the lab the Eevee had become very distant. While under the influence of the ultrasonic device the normal-type had turned on his Trainer, biting the teen's leg so badly that he needed stitches and several days before he could walk again. A bandage still covered the healing puncture marks on his calf. Even though the young man constantly tried to reassure his Pokemon, the Eevee simply seemed unable to forgive himself. Gizmo approached loyally, but wouldn't take his normal place. Instead, he preferred to stay in the Pokeball Lucas kept around his neck.

On their Pokemons' backs, the two Trainers headed out east to Slateport. The trip would be simple enough. They'd hug the southern coast of Hoenn until they hit the luxury beach and along the way there were plenty of small islands to stop and rest at. The water in this part of the ocean was so calm and peaceful, you could actually see what was happening underwater for several miles down. Only a twenty mile stretch of open water presented any kind of real hazard. By ferry the trip would be far, far faster, able to get there in a single afternoon. By Pokemon it would take two to three days.

At first Lucas wondered if he simply wasn't better off flying back to Slateport, having been there he could navigate on the back of a Pokemon, but as Skyler handled most of the most annoying Tentacool, the teen found himself starting to enjoy the trip. If nothing else, it gave him another opportunity for training and filling out his Pokedex. It also gave him more time to talk and hang out with Skyler.

The sun started setting on the first day, the sky turning brilliant reds and purples as the faint bio luminescent glow of Chinchou and Lanturn slowly lit up the rapidly blackening water. The first day of their trip done, the two Trainers landed on a small island a few hundred feet across to make camp. There were a few sparse palm trees and a small fresh-water pond where the two could refill their water bottles and rest.

Skyler started a fire with the can of kerosene he kept in his bag and Lucas sank onto his spread out sleeping bag to catch his breath. While surfing on Blobby Bob was a total blast, riding the Pokemon over the open water took more out of the Trainer than walking ever did. His tanned skin was pink from the direct sunlight, and his lips were completely chapped from the salty air. And when he drank from the pond he didn't even realize how parched he truly was until the water went down his throat. When the other young man finished tending the fire he dropped down next to Lucas on his own sleeping bag and let out his own exhausted sigh.

"Phew, it's rough trip but I wouldn't trade anything for it, would you?" Skyler asked his companion.

"Surfing's good, but flying is better. The wind in your face, the way the ground just is a blur below you, feeling like you're racing the sun," Lucas responded. He dug into his own duffelbag and went to work preparing some spicy instant noodles he had stocked up on for the trip.

Skyler propped his arm on his knee and slumped his face onto his hand, "Sadly I have never had a chance to fly. My Dragonair has to evolve before I can, but I've seen people from Blackthorn fly on their Dragonite, and it does look pretty amazing,"

"Well, when we get a chance I'll let you fly with me on my Charizard. Trust me, the only thing better than flying on the back of a Pokemon is getting laid," As Lucas realized what he had said he felt like his throat was closing.

Skyler simply laughed, a happy carefree sound that immediately put Lucas at ease, "That's a pretty controversial statement. I guess one day you'll have to prove it," Lucas felt the blood rushing to his face again, his mind wondering if his companion was referring to proving the flying or the laying. Shortly Lucas got his answer, "Or I'll just find Rayquazza and fly for myself,"

"I was wondering about that. You seem pretty determined to find Rayquazza, but for all you know that Pokemon is nothing more than a legend. Don't forget, not every rumor about Pokemon is true," Lucas pulled the finished noodles from the fire and handed a portion to Skyler.

"Yeah, but that's part of the fun of exploring, the not knowing. Man, I love traveling. Seeing things you've never seen before, experiences that you can only understand when you've felt them yourself. Rayquazza could be a total myth, but finding out for myself is the only way I'll be satisfied. And if it is real, then can you imagine? Such a powerful dragon to Train? I'd be a legend," Skyler seemed lost in thought after his final statement, prodding his noodles absently. Suddenly he turned back to Lucas and smiled, "There's something I've been wondering about you as well,"

"Oh?" Lucas said nervously.

"I didn't want to ask back in Dewford Town because you were obviously trying to shake that reporter lady, but seriously, how did you know all about that device and stuff?"

"Because I've seen one like it before. A few months back in Sinnoh there was another one planted in Iron Island. It drove all the Pokemon there absolutely crazy, and made them all super powerful. It had the same green lights. And the same label on it," Lucas reached into his pocket and pulled out the scrap of metal he had taken back in the lab. On it was a shield-shaped crest of royal blue with three gold stars arranged in the shape of the letter 'C'.

"What is it?" Skyler took the piece and examined it for himself.

"It's the crest of Team Cosmic,"

"You mean those psychos that went after Sinnoh? The ones that want to destroy weak people and Pokemon?"

"Yes," Lucas took the metal back from the blue-haired Trainer and slipped it back into his pocket, "That was a Cosmic lab, which means they've been operating in Hoenn as well. Worse is that they're getting better at it. The other device was tinier, and way less powerful. I didn't get a headache until I was almost by the thing. This new one gave me a migraine as soon as I set foot in the lab. And Gizmo only hurt his ears. This time the waves actually caused him to attack me. And I'm pretty sure Agron Kong was also one of their experiments. It makes me sick to my stomach to think about the other Pokemon that didn't survive, the ones used for samples,"

"It's strange. When I was a kid Team Rocket did something similar at the Lake of Rage. I know because I had a relative who investigated it. I wonder if Cosmic is trying the same thing," Skyler said thoughtfully.

"Seems like it,"

"So why didn't you tell Gabby about it? If Cosmic is active in Hoenn, shouldn't people know?"

Lucas took in a deep breath, "Listen, I gotta tell you. I'm a pretty stupid person. The only reason I know anything about these devices is because someone else told me how they worked. I'm not pretending I'm some great military strategist or anything, but I do know Cosmic. I've run into them enough times to know how they work. They're sneaky, and they're subtle. If they know they've been caught they'll just up root and move on somewhere else. But if they don't know that I know they're here, I can still do something to stop them,"

"You're pretty brave," Skyler smiled, "That makes you pretty cool,"

"I'm not brave, I just don't like seeing people hurting Pokemon. It's not right,"

"Even Tentacool?"

Lucas sighed, "Yes, even Tentacool,"

"We should probably get some sleep," Skyler yawned, "Night Lucas,"

While Skyler crawled into his sleeping bag, Lucas put out the canned fire. The other Trainer was already dead to the world as soon as he put his head on the ground, something that amused Lucas intensely. For a few minutes he watched Skyler sleeping. He seemed so peaceful, and the features of his face were still visible in the low light of the sea night. While it was getting easier to talk with his new friend, the teen still couldn't get over the feelings that seemed to be building up instead of dissipating. And at that moment he would have given anything to be sleeping right next to him instead of several feet away on the other side of the now smoldering campfire. But he knew how reality worked, and he resolved himself to stop wasting his heart on a straight guy. His feelings still hadn't quite recovered from when the Coordinator Ashley rejected him.

Instead he focused on the problems with his Pokemon team. He let Gizmo and Diablo out of their Pokeballs to curl up next to him as he slept. And while Diablo didn't hesitate to plop himself next to Lucas' side, rather than taking his spot by his Trainer's head or chest, the Eevee once again took his distance, curling himself into a tight ball just in the shadow of a palm tree.

The next morning the two Trainers headed early out back into the water. They were making good time, and soon would start to see the tallest buildings of Slateport City. More and more often giant freighters would pass them by as they headed the same direction to the commercial city. But as morning turned into afternoon, Skyler on his Gyrados stopped suddenly, the two treading water as Skyler looked seriously at the sky.

Lucas and Blobby Bob pulled up next to them, and the teen called out this friend, "What's going on?"

"A storm is coming, a big one. We need to find shelter as soon as possible," Skyler replied.

The tattooed teen looked all around him. As far as he could see, the sky was as clear as it always was. Perfectly blue with some steel colored clouds on the distant horizon, "What makes you so sure?"

"Blackthorn City is in the mountains. When you grow up in the mountains you develop a sense about these storms. Like, how the wind keeps changing direction every couple of minutes, and the color of those clouds,"

While Lucas was still a bit skeptical about how such a beautiful day could turn so monstrous, his utter hatred of rain and Skyler's determined expression told him to err on the side of caution. The two Trainers had run into a small problem with their plan. They had just entered the final part of their journey to Slateport, the twenty mile stretch of open water. They could turn back, but the nearest island they saw was hours ago, and Skyler's prediction proved to be correct. First the winds kicked up full blast, ripping at their clothes and hair. The distant gray clouds whooshed quickly with the winds, and the sky turned dark and ominous. Then the clouds opened up and it began pouring. The two Trainers on their Pokemon worked against the wind, trying to move forward and their pace slowed with each passing moment. It made the storm Lucas went through near Dewford Town seem like an unpleasant shower. The teen Trainer squinted through squall trying to find anything that would pass as protection, but it seemed like there was nothing but open sea, even the coastline they were following seemed to disappear. He tried not to lose sight of Skyler, and started planning on using his Swellow to escape if things kept up, but just when all hope was lost, he spotted a shape on the horizon.

"Skyler, there!" Lucas shouted above the roar of the storm. Lightning was starting, and in the open water they were sitting ducks. The other Trainer nodded in understanding, and the massive Gyrados veered his course towards the shape. The currents were in their favor as they got pushed closer and closer to the shape, which proved to be a cruise ship, grounded on a reef just below the water's surface.

Gratefully, the two Trainers collapsed inside the relatively dry shelter of the mauled vessel, recalling their equally exhausted Pokemon as they waited out the storm. The two lied in silence for several minutes as they caught their breath, before they both pulled themselves up to a sitting position and leaned their backs against the rusting steel plate walls.

"Well, I don't know about you, but I'm pretty sure I won't need a shower for about a year," Skyler joked.

"No, I'll need about fifty hot showers before I remember what it's like to feel warm again. I'm soaked in places I didn't even think could get soaked," Lucas grumbled as he squeezed water and dissolved gel out of his now limp Mohawk. He pulled a Pokeball from his belt and summoned Diablo, "I know I'll end up smelling like wet dog, but at this point I don't care,"

Lucas motioned for Diablo to sit next to him, but rather than take the open side on Lucas' left, the Mightyena looked from Skyler to his Trainer and wedged himself on the teen's right side, pushing Skyler slightly away. Skyler fell on his side from being shoved, "Wow, excuse me!"

Diablo looked back to Skyler, silently showed his teeth before dropping his head possessively into Lucas' lap, "Jeez Diablo, what is your problem?" The teen turned apologetically to his friend, "Sorry about that, he's never done that before,"

Skyler shrugged, "No worries,"

"So what do you think is this place, anyway?" Lucas asked as he looked around the abandoned vessel.

"Probably a ship that got caught up in a storm like this one. Corsola are pretty common in these warm waters so they build reefs all over the place. Not hard to run aground when things get as murky as they are," Skyler surmised, "It didn't sink all the way so probably no one got hurt, but it's still pretty eerie to think that a cruise ship like this, so full of people, is now completely abandoned,"

"I wonder why no one's tried to salvage it," Lucas wondered aloud. Just then a scraping ringing dinned through the hull, followed by an ominous wet, squelching noise.

"What was that?!" Skyler hissed.

"I thought you'd know!" Lucas whispered back. Once again the scraping and squelching rang through the ship.

"We should probably check it out..." Skyler decided, but his expression seemed less confident.

Lucas took in a calming breath and nodded, "You're right, it might be someone needing our help,"

Cautiously, with Skyler's flashlight guiding their path and Diablo covering their rear, the two Trainers got up from their resting place and started exploring the abandoned vessel. Their boots made heavy thudding noises while the pelting rain roared outside, and every couple of minutes the unpleasant scraping and squelching would ring louder and louder as they moved through the ship.

The ship had clearly been wrecked for several years, and while mysteriously no one dragged the gored vessel back to a salvage yard for the valuable metal, there were signs that people had been inside since after it was wrecked. Skyler and Lucas said nothing to each other for several minutes, Lucas' fighter's instinct telling him to stay alert to his surroundings. There was something about the ship and its noises that made his skin crawl, but he couldn't place the reason.

Skyler stopped and switched off his flashlight, turning to face Lucas in the darkness. For a split second caution was replaced with that fluttering feeling in Lucas' stomach to be with Skyler in the darkness, but went away again when Skyler spoke, "Have you noticed anything...odd about this ship?"

"In what way?"

"Well, you're a Trainer, right? So you've explored all sorts of things. Old factories, caves, forests, do you notice anything missing?"

Lucas thought for a moment as he realized his companion's point, "You're right. There are no Pokemon here. This place has been abandoned for years, obviously, but we haven't run into anything. Not even a single Zubat. Pokemon love making nests in abandoned human dwellings,"

"Exactly," Skyler nodded. Just then the eerie squelching and scraping got even louder.

"We're almost at the hull,"

Skyler turned his flashlight back on and stepped carefully around. The previously dry ground was starting to have ankle depth water. As the water got deeper and cloudier, Diablo let out a yelp and made Lucas jump.

"What is it, boy?" Lucas asked gently as the dark type thrashed in the water. He seemed desperate to keep his feet out of the liquid, but the nature of a quadruped forced him to have at least two legs down. Finally Lucas put his hands near his Pokemon and got splashed. As soon as the liquid touched his skin he understood his Pokemon's behavior and howled in pain, "Son of a bitch!"

"What's wrong?!" Skyler asked with great concern.

"There's acid in the water, burns like hell," Lucas winced as he shook his wounded hand and recalled his suffering Pokemon. Skyler lifted up his feet and shined the light to find his shoes were almost completely bleached. Carefully the two continued to tread through the water as they spotted a doorway up ahead.

Skyler shined his light through the doorway and just as Lucas was about to step through he grabbed the smaller man by the waist and pulled him back, "Whoa! You do _not_ want to go in there,"

"Why, what's going on?" Lucas squinted through the doorway to see what had caused the other Trainer to grab him. At first all Lucas could see were some dim shapes of twisted metal, but as his eyes adjusted he realized that there was a faint red glow coming from the floor.

The two stepped to the doorjamb and the light from the flashlight reflected stronger. In the half-submerged room were hundreds upon hundreds Tentacool floating in the shallow water. And slightly shriveled and clearly in total agony was a large Tentacruel trapped under a fallen steel girder.


End file.
